The Shadow And The Flame
by AshleyCelestine
Summary: (Story originally from my Tumblr) (Lots of Zoethian) At a young age, Princess Zoeya of Tekkitopia was assigned a personal protector. Rythian. What happens as time ticks on, and a war unfolds between Tekkitopia and it's neighboring countries?
1. Prologue

In the kingdom of Tekkitopia, a girl by the name of Zoeya was born to King Xephos and Queen Lomadia. The kingdom rejoiced at the birth of their princess, odd as she may have looked next to her parents with her fire hair and ocean-colored eyes. Plans were immediately being made for her future, and noblemen from across the kingdom came to the grand ball to nominate their sons for the role of Royal Guardian to the newborn.

As soon as the son chosen became a knight, he went to the castle to serve as the princess' personal bodyguard. King Xephos turned away many of the boys, seeing spoiled children and fathers who only wished to gain power. Not one of them even seemed remotely interested in the real issue: the princess' well being. One nobleman's son, though, stood out from the rest.

A quiet, good-mannered young boy named Rythian. He addressed the king politely, and though he was only two, seemed very eager to help the Royal Family protect their daughter. Both monarchs liked him, and assigned him the responsibility of protecting their beloved daughter one day.

They made a smart choice, it turned out. The boy could handle a large variety of weapons by the time he reached 7, so gifted was he at combat and defense. He then began to dabble in magic, though still practicing his sword fighting, archery, and other weaponry daily. By the time he was 11, he reached the qualifications for knighthood.

It was a feat that had never been accomplished before. A mere boy of only 11 years of age becoming a full-fledged knight. Most didn't believe he was ready until they saw him fight for themselves. Even the King and Queen didn't believe their eyes when they received the letter that Rythian was ready.

Never the less, they had him sent to the castle immediately, and knighted him. They then introduced the princess and guardian. The two children got along well, and soon became best friends. As time went on, Princess Zoeya grew accustomed to Rythian's strangeness: the mask he wore covering half his face, the cape with eyes as purple as his on the back, the magic powers he possessed, even the blonde streak in his brunette-colored hair.

Over the years, he began to teach her magic. Soon, the pair were flying in the air and speeding plants growth with magic rings, and walking through fire unharmed with amulets. The two had fun together, but Rythian never lost sight of his real purpose. He was there to protect Zoeya.

At any public event Rythian stayed by her side, staying alert to every movement and sound within a twelve foot radius of her. He almost never let her out of his sight anyways, but just to be safe he always kept weapons on him and easily accessible. He made sure his Red Matter Qatar was always in plain view. People would be less eager to attack if his weapon was easily seen and reached.

That wasn't his only weapon, though. Each of his rings served a purpose. One could teleport him anywhere he could see instantly, another shot fireballs, and another snowballs. Not to mention the many hidden knives and daggers concealed in his clothing.

People began to call him the Shadow Guardian because of his dark, mysterious demeanor and the fact that he was like the princess' shadow. Always there. Constant. Unchanging.

Rythian, the Shadow Guardian: Knight, alchemist, and mage. Zoey, the Fire-Haired Girl: Princess, nature enthusiast, and mage's apprentice. These are the characters. This is their story.


	2. Chapter 1

5 Years After The Prologue...

"Come on, Rythian!" Zoey shouted back at him as the two rode their horses through the forest. Rythian was lagging along behind Zoey as she raced along the path, giggling and laughing at the adrenaline rush it gave her. Rythian could've easily caught up with her, but chose to watch her chesnut-colored horse gallop about, it's passenger a flash of red hair and blue skirts.

Finally she slowed her horse down to walk beside his, pouting. "Why won't you race me?" She whined, her arms crossed. He chuckled.

"Because, Zoey," he said "I'll win, and I don't want to break your good mood." At this she scoffed. "You'll win, huh?" She asked incredulously.

He only nodded, keeping his eyes on the path ahead of him, smirking beneath the mask he wore. She smiled. "I guess we'll have to prove that, won't we?" He looked at her.

"If that's what you want..." He said, trailing off to make it sound like he was hesitant. She nodded enthusiastically, and he replied "Alright, if you say so..."

Zoey beamed up at him. "Last one back to the castle is a rotten egg!" She screamed, and instantly, the two were off, Rythian saving his horses energy for the final stretch, lagging behind her slightly again. Zoey laughed and giggled as she looked back and saw Rythian and his grey horse behind her.

She was sure she was going to win when the castle came into view. However, she soon saw a streak of grey shoot past her and looked up to see Rythian at least ten meters ahead of her. She scowled and pushed her horse harder, but the horse wouldn't go. She had used up all it's energy in the first stretch of the race!

She heard Rythian's laugh as he hopped the fence into the castle's private pasture, pulling his horse to a stop as he waited for Zoey. A few seconds later her horse jumped the fence and came to a stop beside him. Her arms were crossed as she mumbled "You're a jerk." Rythian laughed.

"Hey," he said, holding up his hands "I warned you, didn't I?" Again the princess pouted, and Rythian hopped down from his horse. He offered his hand to Zoey. "Come on, your parents will want to know where we've been."

After only another moment of scowling at him, she took his hand and was helped down from her horse. "That," he added, gesturing to her horse "And I think Willow needs a break." Zoey couldn't help but smile, and grabbed her horse's reigns. The two led the horses to the stables, removing bridles and saddles and putting them back in their stalls.

They stayed there for a bit longer, Zoey braiding Willow's mane for some unknown reason, and Rythian petting his horse, Ghost. Zoey chattered on about seemingly whatever came to her mind, and Rythian listened. They stayed like this until a messenger came to them, bowing as he said "You're requested in the king's court, Princess, Guardian."

Rythian nodded and thanked him, and he left, rushing off to do whatever other business he was assigned. Zoey looked at Rythian as he sized her up."You may want to change that dress, Zoey" he said, frowning. "That one's filthy."

She sighed. "Fine, but we'll have to hurry. Mother and Father will get impatient." She looked expectantly at Rythian.

He knew what she wanted, and rolled his eyes. She used every excuse she could get to do this... "Fine, we'll fly..." He grumbled, tossing Zoeya her flying ring he kept for her.

She squealed in excitement and caught the ring, sliding it on her finger and following Rythian out of the stable. Rythian looked around to make sure no one was watching, and then took Zoey's hand, flying upwards. He lead her to her always open bedroom window and the two flew in, landing softly on the stone floor. He waited at the window while she went into the other room, picking out another dress and changing into that.

When she emerged, she wore a nearly identical blue dress, the only thing changing being the sleeve length. Her last dress had mid-length sleeves, but these were long. Rythian nodded in approval, and the two flew back out the window and into the main courtyard. Zoey gave Rythian back the flying ring, and the two entered the great hall, Rythian at Zoeya's left shoulder as always.

Upon entering, they found King Xephos was pacing the floor in front of his throne, the queen rolling her eyes at him. When Xephos noticed them, he went into a brief lecture about how much Zoeya had worried him by sneaking off all the time, blah, blah, blah... After this, he sat in his throne and sighed. Zoey rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, dad, you know I wouldn't do anything bad!" She said defensively, pointing out "Rythian wouldn't let me anyways!" At this he laughed a bit, agreeing "No, I suppose he wouldn't."

Rythian then jumped into the discussion. "The princess is quite safe with me, Your Majesty. No need to worry yourself." The queen smiled.

Xephos nodded, and moved on to the original topic of the meeting. "Now then, Zoey, I know you're not going to like this, but..." He took a deep breath. "Prince Lalna has requested your hand in marriage. Again."

At this Zoey crossed her arms. "Dad, I've told him before and I'll tell him now. No!" Xephos nodded. "Yes dear, but this time-"

Zoey's temper flared and she shouted "I don't care what he's offered us this time! I won't marry him!" The room went dead silent.

The queen spoke now, saying gently "Zoey, let your father finish, please." Zoey huffed and crossed her arms. Xephos sighed and began again. "This time Lalna has pointed out that your marriage would mean the merge of both of our kingdoms, and for the good of both of our kingdom's people, I think you should consider it."

Zoeya was shocked that her own father could request such a thing. Queen Lomadia instantly saw her husbands error as Zoey's lip began to quiver. "How can you even suggest that, dad?!" She wailed, her emotional state crumbling.

"You know he's only interested in power! Do you really want a power-hungry fool ruling that many people? A-And sleeping in the same bed as me?!" Her father stood still and silent.

"You should know that I won't marry him by now! My answer will stay the same, no matter what! You just want to get rid of me!" At this, Xephos grew angry.

Soon, it was a shouting match, Zoey accusing her parents of not loving her, while Xephos grew more and more impatient with her unwillingness to negotiate. Soon, he became fed up enough to say he'd make her marry him if he had to. The room fell dead silent, Zoey only able to shake her head and back away. Even Rythian, who normally didn't involve himself in these arguments, glared at the king.

"I'm leaving." Zoey said, her voice small as she turned and walked out of the great hall, Rythian directly behind her. After the doors slammed, Xephos' anger subsided, and he realized what he'd done. The queen was even displeased with him, and she just shook her head and left him to think about what he'd just said to his daughter.

Meanwhile, Zoey was storming through her room, grabbing whatever she could and throwing it in the alchemical bag Rythian had made for her. Rythian watched her, knowing what she intended to do. "Zoey, I know what your father said was wrong, but is running really the answer?" He asked gently, watching as she stuffed another dress into her bag.

"If he really intends to do what he said, then yes." She said, still huffing as she threw her hairbrush into the bag. He stepped in her way, and when she tried to step around him, he went with her. She glared up at him, growling "Move, Rythian!" He looked down at her calmly.

This only made her angrier. How could he be so calm? "Zoey, calm down." He said, using the same tone her mother had used a few minutes before.

She grew still angrier. He continued "Think for minute. While what your father said was wrong, he did make a good point; Maybe-"

She stopped him there. "You're just like them!" she said accusingly, stepping back from him as she had her father. Everyone was betraying her, even Rythian!

"Zoey..." He said gently, stepping towards her. She shook her head, tears blurring her vision as she stepped back again. "I thought you were my friend!"

He stepped closer again. She stepped back, but tripped over one if the dresses she'd thrown on the floor in her blind rage. Rythian caught her before she hit the ground, but she struggled against his grip, whining "Let me go!" Over and over again.

She didn't realize what she was doing until she did it. She slapped him as hard as she could. In the face. Most men would have gone into a blind rage and hit her back, twice or three times as hard.

But not Rythian. He had sworn on his own life to protect her from harm, and he wasn't about to hurt her. He grabbed her wrists, whispering "Stop, Zoey." repeatedly in her ear until she stopped struggling.

She sank to the floor, and Rythian went with her, holding her steady as she broke down in tears. He consoled her, whispering reassurances in her ear as she cried into his chest. After awhile, she began to calm down, and Rythian held her at arms length to look her over. She looked up at him, her face tear-streaked and her eyes bloodshot.

"I'm sorry I hit you." She squeaked, and Rythian smiled. "It's okay. You didn't hurt me at all."

She smiled too, and he said "Now, are you still running away, or are you going to stay where you have a warm bed?" She shook her head. "I'm staying, but I don't know for how long. If dad really intends to force me to marry Lalna, then..."

Rythian nodded. "I understand. Now then, I think you'll have to unpack your things again... And probably clean up a bit."

Zoey shoved him playfully, sensing the joke he made. "Oh, shut up, Ryth." She grumbled, and he laughed. After Zoey put all her stuff back, she glanced out the window.

"It's late, isn't it?" Rythian said, following her gaze. Zoey nodded. Her thoughts wondered back to her father.

"Rythian?" She asked, looking up at her Guardian. "Hm?" She looked back out the window for a second.

"If dad really did try and make me marry Lalna, and I decided to run, would you go with me?" She asked, looking back up at him. He looked out the window, up at the stars. Then he looked down at her, and she could tell by the glint in his eyes that he was smiling.

"Of course I'd go with you!" He said, and she smiled. "As long as it wasn't a huge mistake, and it was our only option..." He added, leaning against the windowsill so that he was closer to her height.

The two watched the stars for awhile, and Rythian noticed a familiar constellation in the sky. He pointed it out to Zoey. "You see those 6 stars there?" he asked, pointing to a cluster of stars.

Zoey nodded. "Look how they connect." She looked at them for a minute, and noticed they formed what looked like... "A flame!"

Rythian smiled. "Yep. It's called the Blaze, after the monster made out of flames." Zoey became excited.

"I read about those! They live in the Nether and can fly and shoot fire! I thought they were the coolest thing when I was younger." Rythian nodded and chuckled.

"Yes, Zoey, I know. I was there, remember?" Zoey giggled. "Yeah, I know."

Rythian noticed the moon's placement in the sky. "It's really late now, Zoey. You need sleep." He said, standing straight again.

At the mention of sleep, Zoey yawned. "Sleep does sound pretty good right now. I'm exhausted!" Rythian chuckled.

"I'd imagine! You've had a rough day, after all." She nodded. "Goodnight, Ryth, see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight, Zoey." He said, turning and leaving Zoey's room, entering his own directly across the hall. Upon entering, he lit the torches on the walls with a snap of his fingers, and walked over to his cluttered desk. On it there were books full of magic spells and incantations, several quills and bottles of ink, and right on top, his journal.

Sure, it seemed dumb to keep a journal, and kind of girly, but it helped him keep his thoughts straight. He sat down in the chair, grabbed a pen and ink, and began to write. He must've stayed up half the night writing, at first documenting the day, but then slipping into just writing stories about whatever came to his mind. He was better at writing than speaking, and often wrote short stories or even entire books on a whim.

When he finally settled down to sleep, it was almost dawn. He slept deeply for what was left of the night, hoping that the king would see reason when the morning came. He didn't want to have to run away with Zoey, but if he needed to, he would. It was his duty as her Guardian to keep her safe, and if that meant running away, then so be it.


	3. Chapter 2

Zoeya woke the next morning and threw on a green dress, tying her red hair in a ponytail before heading into the hallway. At the same time, Rythian emerged from his room, wearing his usual outfit, his mask secured on his face, as always. To most people, this would seem an odd coincidence. To them, it was a normal routine.

"Good morning, Ryth!" Zoeya said cheerily as the two of them walked down the hall towards the main dining room. "Morning, Zoey.." he replied, his accent thick from lack of sleep.

Zoey giggled. "I see you got plenty of sleep." She said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. Rythian scoffed, replying just as sarcastically "Oh yeah, tons."

She laughed, and he studied her. She was slouching slightly, her eyes weren't quite as focused as usual, and he felt that most of her smiles and giggles were forced. Any normal person wouldn't have noticed any of this, but Rythian's unusual eyes let him see things others couldn't. Rythian could tell the argument with her father was still bothering Zoeya.

"What are you going to do about him?" Rythian asked, referring to her father. Zoey sighed. "I don't know yet," she admitted, "But I have a bad feeling about today, and I can't shake it."

Rythian nodded. There was a sense of dread in the atmosphere, but he couldn't understand why. When they arrived in the dining hall, it was explained. Sitting at the table next to Zoey's usual seat, sat Lalna.

Zoey nearly stopped, but Rythian kept her moving, whispering "Act like you don't see him, Zoey." She did as she was told, and took her seat. Teep, the mute servant boy who attended Zoey most of the time, presented her breakfast to her, then Rythian's to him. They both thanked him and after that, Lomadia chattered away with Lalna.

Xephos refused to meet Zoey's eyes, but Rythian could tell that he was as surprised by Lalna's visit as try were. Lomadia didn't expect it, but, as queen was expected to act as if she was pleased. He noted some of her smiles were forced, but they weren't as obvious to him as Zoey's were. He didn't know the queen as well as he did Zoey.

He listened to Lalna for awhile, but acted as if he didn't, whispering to Zoey the information he'd been gathering so that only she could hear. Rythian had never met the Prince Lalna before, but as soon as he walked in the room he could tell he wouldn't like him. His entire persona bubbled over with a smug arrogance, and the way he presented himself to the Royal Family was very plainly disrespectful. He thought he was good enough to get anything he wanted, even from a kingdom more powerful and bigger than his, simply by showing up.

And right now, what he wanted was Princess Zoeya. Rythian suspected he wasn't used to being told no, so when Zoey refused him, he felt the need to change her mind. That's why he was here. He was trying to win her over.

If he couldn't get her voluntarily, he would try to convince the king and queen to make Zoeya marry him. This was Zoey's worst fear at the moment, and she kept it hidden well. But Rythian wouldn't let that happen. Zoey's eyes flicked to his as she heard Lalna address her.

He saw her brace herself, and then she turned to him and answered whatever question he had asked. Rythian hadn't payed attention. He was immediately studying every aspect of the prince's behavior towards Zoey, judging his height and weight and whether his eyes held any alternate motives.

He saw that all these things suggested he was after Zoeya for two reasons: Power and Money. He was not concerned for her happiness or well-being, as he always claimed in his letters, but concerned for her money and the position of King of Tekkitopia going unfilled. His kingdom was not nearly as big or wealthy as hers, and that was what he cared about. Zoey would have to watch out for this man.

He was trouble. Maybe even evil. Rythian's eyes allowed him to see all of this... He would tell Zoey when they were able to be alone.

They ate breakfast as fast as they could with Lalna rambling on about this or that, mentioning and complimenting Zoey at least five times with each changing topic. Eventually, they dismissed themselves from the table and left, heading for the stables. 'To the woods?" Rythian asked, and Zoey nodded.

Without saying a word, the two grabbed their horses and shot off into the woods. Once they felt they were deep enough in, they stopped, and Rythian told Zoey what all he'd discovered. After Rythian recounted his findings, Zoey began to voice her own opinions and observations on Lalna. At first, she was complaining and angry, but at the end, calmed herself.

"I hate to admit it, but he's handsome, Ryth." She whined, looking at the ground. "Most girls would fall for him in an instant." Rythian smiled.

"But you didn't. You know better than to fall for jerks like that." At this Zoey smiled too. An exhausted, slightly sad little smile, but a smile nevertheless.

"How long do you think he'll stay?" Zoeya asked, changing the topic. Rythian shrugged. "Until he gives up trying to marry you, I guess."

Zoey groaned. "In that case, he'll be here awhile. He's extremely persistent." Rythian nodded glumly, admitting "Yes, that he is."

There was silence for awhile, until Zoey thought of something. " know why he came today." Rythian looked at her with a questioning look. "What do you mean?"

"My birthday party is in a week. It's the textbook opportunity for a public marriage proposal. He's going to force me to choose my image over my happiness." Zoey looked at Rythian, but her mind was elsewhere, picturing the horrible scenario in her head.

"I won't let him get anywhere near you, if that's what you want.." He said, outing a comforting hand on her shoulder. Zoey shook her head. "But what if he does get near me, what if he does manage to ask me publicly?" Rythian debated over what to tell her for a minute, but decided almost immediately.

"Choose happiness. If you let him win, he'll carry on getting whatever he wants by placing threats and playing mind games. Besides, who cares what everyone else thinks?" At this, Zoey smiled.

This time it was a genuinely amused smile, not a sad one or a forced one. It made Rythian happy to know she was lightening up. She snapped him out of his thoughts with "Thanks, Ryth" and he found he was smiling rather dumbly at her.

He took his hand off of her and stood. "Come on, let's kill some time. Maybe we can get back after Lalna gets to bed." Zoeya nodded, and the two mounted their horses and sped deeper into the forest.

They spent the majority of their time in a clearing with a small spring, Rythian amusing Zoey by levitating the water and making it into cool shapes. She was fascinated by how the water seemed so willing to do what Rythian wanted, and he didn't have the heart to tell her he was exhausting himself doing it. As it drew closer to dusk, however, Zoey began to get scared. She'd never been out this late or this far into the woods before...

Rythian sensed her uneasiness and came to sit beside her as the sun set. She kept glancing at the tree line nervously, and jumped at almost every sound. "What's wrong, Zoey?" Rythian asked, and she let out a shaky sigh.

"To be honest? I'm kind of scared... I kind of wanna go home, too." Rythian had to keep himself from laughing.

"For someone who claims to be such a nature enthusiast, you sure don't like to be in it." Zoey's frustration at his statement distracted her from her fear as she said defensively "Not true! I love being in nature!"

Then she added "Just not when it's dark and creepy and I'm in the middle of a forest.." Rythian let out his laugh now, and Zoey again glared at him, but was distracted by the rapidly falling light level around her. 'Dark, dark, very very dark!" Zoey exclaimed in a panicky way as the sun set fully.

Rythian rolled his eyes, saying"Oh, clam down." He summoned a ball of light to his hand, illuminating the entire clearing with the miniature sun. Zoey sighed in relief, but then remembered something. She told Rythian about it, too.

"Ryth?" She asked, and her guardian turned to her. "My parents are going to be so mad when we get back..." She giggled slightly towards the end of her statement, and again Rythian felt himself smiling like an idiot.

"No worries, Zoey. They know you're safe with me." Rythian said, and Zoey smiled at him. Immediately following, though, a twig broke at the edge of the clearing, and she jumped. Straight into Rythian's chest.

He looked in the direction of the sound, pulling her closer with his other arm, and then bent down to Zoey and whispered "Hush, Zoey. It's only one of the horses moving around." At this she relaxed, but remained close to the mage, still nervous about the creatures of the night. The two let another few minutes pass before getting up and mounting the horses, riding back towards the castle.

The forest was quiet tonight, and no monsters bothered them on their way. When they returned, the two headed for their beds, seeing no sign of Lalna. Rythian was hesitant to leave Zoey, knowing he was in the castle, probably just down the hall. The very thought made him uneasy, not to mention the reality.

Alas, he had to leave her. They whispered their goodnights and separated, Rythian following his nightly routine and then heading to bed, exhausted. He had used a lot of his energy, both magic and not today. He needed rest, and badly.

This time, it was Zoey who had trouble sleeping. She tossed and turned for the majority of the night. She was overwhelmed. With Lalna here, and his threat to either brutally murder her reputation as a kind young princess, or force her to marry him.

But, there was something else, too. Something that didn't involve Lalna. Maybe it was her teenage mind getting the better of her, but she swore she felt better in the forest when she practically leaped into Rythian's arms. It hadn't been on purpose, it was simply a reflex.

Besides, he HAD told her that if she ever felt that she was in danger, to stay close to him... But she didn't think he meant it like that. He didn't seem bothered by it, though. He actually seemed amused, even pleased.

That was part of what confused her. Normally, if he knew it was no threat, he would simply laugh and move her back to her original position. But not this time. This time he had actually pulled her closer, and he believed her imaginary threat to be fathomable.

It wasn't normal. Not for him, anyways. Maybe he was paranoid about Lalna? Maybe that was why he had acted strangely?

She shook her head. She had absolutely no clue what was going on. But she always told herself to focus on the positive. Her birthday was coming!

She would be 15, only a year younger than Rythian... Though technically not, since his birthday was in a month anyway, but she felt better when she wasn't 2 years behind him. He was not only a lot taller than her, but 2 years older! She felt so small next to him sometimes.

He had this strong, powerful aura around him that made him intimidating. When she had first met him all those years ago, she was actually scared of him. She was only 9, after all, and this boy who appeared out of nowhere with all his dark clothing and combat skills was supposed to follow her around for the rest of her life? It was weird to her.

Then he opened up to her. Slowly, her fear of her guardian melted away. He let her see his friendly side, the side that spoke in sarcasm 75% of the time and laughed a lot. That's how they had gotten into the friendship they were in now.

Then he told her about magic. He showed her his rings and how he could fly with one of them. She was immediately interested after that, and Rythian took her on as his apprentice. It took some time for her to figure out the complex stuff, but she could do a lot of the simple ins and outs of magic like making rings and things like that.

Again she remembered how magic obeyed Rythian so well. It practically danced for him. She thought for a moment what someone like Lalna would do with that kind of power. She scoffed.

Probably take over everyone's minds and turn them into his mindless slaves or something psychotic like that. And he would like, hypnotize her or something so she would agree to be his wife... Actually, what if he could? Suddenly she was very scared.

Ryth had said that he'd seen a flying ring and a lightning ring on his fingers... Then she became even more restless, and sat up. "There's no way I'll be able to sleep if I think like that...' She muttered angrily, rubbing her eyes and standing up.

What could she do to calm herself? She remembered something from a while ago, something when she was 12. Rythian had just been beginning to write his little books and whatnot, and Zoey had nightmares almost all night one night. She hadn't the courage to go to get her mother or father, so she went and woke Rythian up.

He wasn't too happy, but he pulled out the story he'd been writing and read to her until she fell asleep. He was amazing at narrating, even at 14. She wondered whether she should wake him up, and hesitated, until she again pictured Lalna brainwashing everyone, and practically ran to her door. She crept across the hall and knocked softly on his door.

He was a light sleeper, so he came to the door almost immediately, grumbling unhappy things about being woken up and rubbing his eyes. He had remembered to put his mask on, as he always did. When he saw Zoey he let her in, watching her from the door as she sat on his bed. He looked into the hall, making sure no one else was woken up, and closed the door softly.

He turned to Zoey. "Obviously," he said, "You can't sleep." Zoeya nodded, rubbing her eyes again. He sighed and came to sit beside her.

"What is it this time, Zoeya?" He asked gently, his accent again thicker because of his tiredness. Zoey stared off into space and told him, shuddering as she finished. Rythian looked at her for a moment.

"Oh, Zoey..." He muttered, resting his forehead on his palm, though his voice was gentle, not aggravated. "Zoey you don't have to be scared of him. He doesn't have that kind of power."

She took a deep breath. "I know, but I don't like the threat he poses by just being here. It's unsettling." Rythian sighed, glancing at his desk.

The book he'd been working on was sitting there, practically begging to be read... And he too remembered that night 2 years ago when he read to Zoey. By this time, Zoey was already half asleep from pure exhaustion, but he knew she wouldn't sleep soundly unless she relaxed. He sighed again, got up and grabbed the book off the desk, and picked Zoey up, taking both back to her room.

He laid Zoeya on her bed, pulled up a chair, and began to read. 'This is a story about a boy and a girl, in a land of magic and monsters..."


	4. Chapter 3

Rythian moaned in exasperation when the sunlight came through his window the next morning. He had barely gotten any sleep, what with Zoey's paranoia and his own combining. It had taken at least 2 hours for Zoey to get to sleep, on top of that. This didn't leave Rythian with much opportunity to sleep.

He forced himself to get up anyways, throwing on his clothes and mask, then putting his rings on his fingers and amulets around his neck. He ran his fingers through his hair and pulled on his boots and cape before stepping into the hall. There, Zoey greeted him as cheerily as always. "Good morning Ryth!"

"Hi, Zoey." He said, and the two walked toward the dining hall. The day went much like the day before, the two heading to the forest after breakfast and spending all day there, then coming back and heading to bed. This routine went on until the day before Zoeya's party.

The castle was bustling with activity, visitors and servants to the court babbling on about their excitement for the upcoming event. Zoey was being rushed this way and that by so many different people it was hard to keep track. Practically everyone wanted her opinion on this or that, and even Rythian was having trouble keeping up. Zoey had to be fitted for her dress for at least the 6th time, and while Rythian was waiting outside the room (she was determined he wouldn't see her dress until the actual party) Tee approached with something hidden behind his back.

Rythian raised an eyebrow as he slipped into the room, keeping whatever it was behind his back as he did. He slipped back out a moment later, and hurried back the way he came. After another half hour, Zoey emerged, seemingly nothing about her changed at all. She smiled at Rythian and they rushed off to Zoeya's next appointment, and the day continued on like that.

The night of the event, Rythian was again waiting outside Zoey's room, and again it took a very long time for her to be ready. But this time, she emerged quite differently than when she went in. This time, she emerged wearing a crimson ball gown that had a slight golden glimmer when it was hit by the light of the torches on the walls. Her waist was adorned with a golden belt encrusted with sapphires and diamonds, and the small tiara that matched it was perched in her curled red hair.

It also appeared someone had rubbed glitter over her eyelids, making them sparkle like her dress. She smiled up at Rythian, who simply stood there and stared at her. He blinked a few times and shook his head, managing to say "I look like a pile of dirt next to you, Zoey." At this she laughed.

"I can fix that!" She chirped, and before Rythian could protest, she shoved him into his room. He could only watch as Zoey dug through his closet, throwing clothes at him and telling him how boring his wardrobe was. After another 15 or so minutes, she finally got him into something they both liked.

Rythian now wore a deep purple cape instead of a black one, his shirt now black instead of grey, his katar situated into a black and silver sheath that was strapped to his thigh. Zoey had taken the liberty of slicking his hair back, and making him take off some of his amulets so that only a few remained, making his neck seem less crowded. She left his rings alone, but made him trade in his worn out brown leather boots for some shiny new black ones with silver buckles and such. After all this, he looked more regal than usual, which was normally hard to do.

Zoey again smiled at him, and the two set off to the main ballroom. When they entered, just behind the king and queen, Rythian at Zoeya's shoulder, the room fell silent. It was respectful, after all, to quiet when royalty entered any room. But this felt…. different.

Maybe it was the queen and princess' dresses, Lomadia's nearly identical to Zoeya's except the color scheme, hers being a dark blue with silver jewelry and emeralds and diamonds in her belt. It was obvious, though, who was supposed to be the center of attention. Zoeya's bright red dress was supposed to be the eye-catcher, and it worked. Nearly all, if not all of the people in the room at least glanced at Zoey.

Once the Royal Family had taken their seats on their thrones, however, and all formal introductions were made, the chatter resumed, people stopped staring, and Zoey became restless. She began tapping her feet and fiddling with her dress, and her mother noticed and laughed. "Alright," she said "No need to be so obvious, dear, go on ahead, have some fun." Zoey immediately jumped out of her throne and tugged Rythian along behind her as she went to find something to do.

She ended up running into Honeydew, the dwarven general of Xephos' army, and his good friend. He was adorned in golden armor, as he always was for public events, and greeted the princess happily. The two talked for awhile before he was called over to another conversation, and they said their goodbyes and parted ways. After this, she talked with many nobles and foreign rulers, and the two managed to avoid Lalna for most of the night.

Most of it, anyway. As soon as the first slow song came on, he seemingly materialized before Zoey. Luckily, she had been having a conversation with a noble named Nilesy, who was an extreme chatterbox. He -inadvertently- distracted Lalna while the two slipped outside to one of the courtyards, shutting the glass doors quietly behind them.

Zoey took a deep breath and sat down on a bench, laughing. "Thank goodness Nilesy's so eager to talk. Otherwise we would never have gotten out of there!" Rythian nodded, sitting beside her.

She looked up at him for a moment, then back at the room full of people who didn't even notice their absence. Rythian spoke, following her gaze. "Isn't it funny how people miss the things that are right in front of them, simply because they're looking too hard?" Zoey again looked up at him, puzzled.

"What do you mean?" He continued looking at the people in the ballroom. "All those people," he said "By now, have heard from one person or another, that we aren't in that room. They're looking everywhere and asking anyone where we -mostly you- are."

Zoey again looked at the people, realizing he was right as he continued. "Yet, we're sitting right here, right outside a glass door, of all things, and they don't see us. They're too busy looking at the tiny details to realize what's right in front of them." Zoey began to nod, the pieces falling together in her head.

"I get it!" she exclaimed, "It's like…" She fumbled for words for a moment. "Like when the tailor was looking at my dress earlier, she was focusing on every tiny little thing that was screwed up, but I was sitting there like, 'I'm stylin' anyways!'"

At this Rythian laughed. "Stylin' huh? Honestly, I don't know what you'll come up with next." Zoey smiled, replying sarcastically "You mean you actually don't know something?"

Rythian stayed silent. "I'll take that as a 'yes'… I win!" She finished, doing a fist pump in the air.

Rythian again laughed. "I didn't know it was a game…" Zoeya smiled up at him, exclaiming excitedly "Everything is a game to me, Rythian!" He smiled.

"I do have to agree with that…" She glanced back at the room, standing up. "I suppose if they're looking as hard as you say they are, we'd better get back in there before they worry too much." Rythian sighed, agreeing with her as he stood as well.

Before they got quite to the doors, Zoey stopped. "Ryth?" She asked, not quite looking at him. "What?" She looked at the floor for a moment.

"If Duncan ever tries to touch me, and I look really scared, don't let him, okay?" There was general concern and sincerity in her voice, and Rythian nodded, replying gently "Of course, Zoey." She smiled.

"Thanks… Now then, back in we go!" She said, pushing the doors open and walking back inside. Rythian felt the entire room relax as they saw the princess, but he also heard the whispers of gossip and false ideas as to why they were gone.

He frowned. He hated gossip and rumors. Most of the time they had no real fact to them, but people accepted them so willingly… It was frustrating to him.

The night went on uneventfully, until a few hours after the alcohol was passed around. While it was legal for even Zoey to drink, she didn't touch any, and because Lalna was present, Rythian declined as well. He wouldn't risk being drunk if he tried to make a move on Zoey. He was not exactly able to control himself well when he was drunk.

If Lalna did try and make a move… Rythian didn't think he'd take the foreign prince's actions lightly. He'd do something he'd regret. Something like breaking a limb, depending on Lalna's actions.

Zoeya's safety was his top priority, after all. He didn't want to jeopardize it by something he'd done. It turned out that this was a good idea. The prince approached them, as drunk as he could possibly be, and saying things that Rythian thought he'd strangle him for.

He started off with things he would normally say, like little compliments Rythian knew he didn't mean. Then he progressed to… More explicit things that the people who had gathered around gasped at. Most of them, however, gave him the benefit of the doubt because of his drunkenness.

Rythian knew better. He managed to contain himself from lashing out at the stupid prince, but that all changed when he began to make accusations as to why Zoey refused him. Mostly absurd things, but one of them got to him. "You won't marry me because you're Rythian's lover."

This made him extremely angry. How could he accuse the two of them of such things?! He had no idea what either of them were like! Neither of them would dare dishonor not only themselves but the entire kingdom with such things!

They were both better than that… But, like any rumor or gossip, people believed him. They all turned to stare at the princess and guardian, both of them shocked by Lalna's accusations, but in two completely different ways. Zoey stood there, looking extremely offended by what the drunk had said, gasping after he had said it.

Rythian, on the other hand… His jaw was clenched so hard he thought his teeth would break. His hands were fists held so tight that his fingernails cut his palms. He sucked a giant breath in, but he held it, and his angry eyes burned into Lalna's completely smug ones.

The entire room was dead silent. Only Lalna himself dared to even move…. And he really shouldn't have. He tried to lay his hands on Zoey.

As soon as the drunk stepped within a meter of her, a smug and triumphant look on his face, Rythian snapped. He thrust his hand in the prince's direction, his purple eyes literally burning with fury, and in response Lalna was launched across the room by pure magic force. He flew over the crowd of people surrounding them, and hit the wall with a loud thud. He slid to the floor, and Rythian teleported to his half-conscious form.

He grabbed him by his white coat's collar and held him to the wall, his eyes still burning with light that illuminated the entire half of the room with a thin veil of purple. "You will never, and I mean never, lay a single finger on Princess Zoeya." Rythian growled, Lalna simply laughing. Rythian pushed him harder against the wall, causing a stab of pain in his shoulders that only caused him to laugh more.

"You hear me, Lalna?" Rythian demanded, pushing harder still. The prince continued to laugh, and Rythian's anger mounted. He rose his free hand to punch the son of a bitch, but heard Zoey.

"Stop it, Rythian!" She shouted, and he hesitated as he heard her push her way through the crowd of stunned people. She came up about 4 meters behind him before stopping. "Please, Ryth, he's not worth it!" She pleaded, and he remained still.

Lalna chuckled, seeing his hesitation. "That's right, Rythian," he whispered, "Listen to the princess." This only made him angrier, but he felt Zoey's hands on his arm, gently tugging on it, telling him quietly to stop. His eyes stopped glowing and he released the drunken fool, still laughing as he fell to the ground.

Rythian's arm lowered, and he glared at the arrogant prince as he laid laughing on the floor, seemingly not caring about his inevitably broken ribs and multiple bruises on his back, shoulders, and neck. "Let's get out of here, Zoey." Rythian said, and the startled princess followed him as he stormed out of the still silent room. The only sound heard even after they left was Lalna's drunken and delusional chuckling.


	5. Chapter 4

Rythian and Zoey walked briskly down the silent halls of the castle, Zoeya trailing behind the mage who was still seething with anger and frustration. They went out into the courtyard below Zoey's bedroom window, and Rythian sat on a stone bench and sighed, running his hands through his hair. Zoey stood awkwardly a few feet back, watching her guardian as he collected himself again. She wanted to say something, but she couldn't quite figure out what she wanted to say….

He beat her to it, saying quietly "I scared you, didn't I? That's why you stopped me." He didn't look at her, instead keeping his eyes fixed on the ground. She hesitated, not quite sure whether to say yes or no.

He looked at her. "Don't lie to me, Zoey." He said, a sense of sad sincerity in his tone. Zoey sighed, admitting shakily "Y-Yes, you scared me for a moment there…"

He brought his eyes to hers, but she darted them away quickly. She was very plainly nervous, Rythian saw. This brought him to his next question. "Do I scare you now?"

Her eyes fleetingly met his again. There was a slight panic in them, and it pained him slightly to think that he was the reason for it. After a few moments of hesitation, she shook her head. "No, I'm not scared of you, I'm just shaken up a bit."

Rythian got up and walked to her, standing before her as she looked up at him. Her hands were shaking, he noticed, and something was biting at her conscience. Gently, he took her hands in his and held them still, watching her as she watched him, asking "What's wrong?"

She took a deep breath. "I don't know… So many things are running through my head right now…" Rythian smiled slightly.

Zoey had always been a bit… Random. She always had so many things that she was thinking or doing, and being a princess meant she had to be able to juggle all of them at once. But there were always those times she broke down.

Like any normal person, she had stress to deal with, but it was at least doubled as a princess. On top of the fact that as a princess, she couldn't let it get to her; she had to take it in stride and keep going. While she could do this most of the time, keeping up her positive and happy attitude wasn't always easy. Now looked like one of the times that she felt everything was tumbling down upon her.

"When you threw Lalna across that ballroom, I was partly relieved, but I was also scared." Zoeya admitted, again darting her eyes from Rythian's. "I was relieved because I knew you were protecting me from him, but at the same time… You know my dad, he'll catch wind of it and we'll get in trouble again."

She sighed and looked back up at him. "And yes, I'll admit I was a bit scared of you." She watched for a reaction, and when none came, she looked away and continued. "I wasn't scared that you would hurt me, -I know you never would- but I had no idea you had that kind of force within you…"

She took a deep breath. "It scared me to think what someone could do with that kind of natural power. I know it's not possible, but what if Lalna had done that to one of us? What if someone like him had the kind of power you do?"

Rythian sighed and said "People like Lalna don't control themselves as much as I have to. He'd probably go mad, if I had to guess." There was a silence between the two as Zoey thought over Rythian's words. She then agreed quietly "Probably."

Rythian released Zoey's hands, having noticed they were steady now, and he wandered back over to the bench he sat on earlier. She couldn't help but notice how cold her hands were without his there. Then she notched that it was just downright cold out here. She was practically freezing!

She came and sat by Rythian, hoping his body heat would keep her warm. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough just sitting beside him, and soon enough he noticed her shaking. He rolled his eyes. "Jeesh, Zoey, if you were cold, you could have said something!"

He summoned another miniature sun to his hand, and she scooted closer to it. "Better?" He asked after a moment, looking down at her. She simply nodded, now beginning to yawn.

She glanced up at her bedroom's window, and again Rythian sighed. "You're tired, and yet you want to fly to your room?" Zoey nodded enthusiastically, saying brightly "I always want to fly, Rythian! It's so fun!"

At this he chuckled, shaking his head slowly. "What am I going to do with you, Zoey?" He asked jokingly, extinguishing the ball of fire in his hand and reaching into the pocket that held her flying ring. Zoey replied with a tone of childish hope "Well, you could give me my flying ring…?" Rythian looked at her for a moment before giving in and tossing it to her.

She squealed with delight as she did whenever she got to fly, and slid the ring on her finger. Almost immediately she rose into the air a few feet, and her face lit up with pure excitement. She absolutely loved flying, and Rythian would have been content enough to watch her zip back and forth like an overenthusiastic child through the air. The mage rose as well, and they flew into Zoeya's room, he trailing slightly behind her as he always did. She pouted when Rythian held his hand out for the ring, but she gave it to him, knowing she'd probably coax it out of him tomorrow anyway. She sat on her bed, earlier worries forgotten, red dress sparkling as she swung her feet around like a small child would, humming some tune that had popped into her mind. Rythian watched her, leaning against her windowsill, smiling to himself. It was funny to him how she was a 15 year old and acting like she was 5.

Then he remembered something he was supposed to do, and reached into his left pocket, feeling the small box inside. Zoeya's birthday present. He mentally slapped himself for forgetting, getting her attention by saying "Hey, Zoey?" She looked up at him.

Suddenly nervous, he pulled the red package out of his pocket and showed it to her, walking over. "Happy birthday." He said, handing it to her. She smiled at him and untied the golden ribbon, opening the box to find a long golden chain with a ruby mushroom pendant at the end, diamonds in place of the white dots.

Zoey stared at the shimmering present in awe, and Rythian smiled. He knew she would love it. She managed to say quietly "Rythian…. It's so pretty!"

She looked at him and he said "Well, what are you waiting for? Put it on!" She smiled and complied, asking him to fasten it for her. He did, and after it was on she studied it in the mirror, smiling brightly, Rythian just behind her.

She admired it for a moment or two longer before she turned back to Rythian, still smiling from ear to ear. "Thanks, Ryth!" She said, nearly knocking him off his feet with a hug. He laughed, hugging her back and saying "I'm glad you like it, Zoey."

They stayed like that for a moment, until Zoey pulled back and yawned again. Rythian chuckled slightly. "Tired, huh?" He asked, and she nodded, mumbling "A little."

There she went, acting like a little girl again. He released her and said "Get some sleep, Zoey. I'll see you in the morning." She nodded and said goodnight, giving him another hug and thanking him for the necklace again before he left.

Once he was in his own room, Rythian sighed, taking off his boots, cape, and weapons. "What a day…." he mumbled, rubbing his temples. He was in serious need of sleep, but as he laid down in his bed, he couldn't make himself tired enough.

He tossed and turned for about half an hour before rolling over to face his window, sighing. The moon was at the perfect angle so that it shone directly through the glass, and it shone onto the leather of his journal's bindings. He sighed again, sitting up. He could try and write what he thought, that did normally help him keep himself organized…

He grabbed the journal and his enchanted quill, sitting back down on his bed. He opened the journal, but hesitated before turning to his bookmark. Normally, he would have just flipped to the next blank page, but tonight, he read from the first page to the last. He had started the journal as soon as he got to the castle after being knighted, and he smiled as he read over the first entry.

"Moved into the castle today. I can't believe the size of this place…. The princess showed me around, and frankly I don't know how she hasn't gotten lost once or twice. She told me to call her Zoey instead of Princess Zoeya, which is going to take some getting used to after talking about her as 'the princess' my whole life, but oh well. She seems nice enough, anyways. Not like some of the other royalty I've met before, not at all. All in all, I think I can get along with everyone here well enough. Maybe life in the castle won't be as hard to adjust to as I thought…."

He flipped to about a year later, coming upon a day he remembered well. The day he showed Zoey his flying ring. He smiled again. That was the day he began to teach her magic.

"I showed my flying ring to Zoey today. It surprised me how interested she was. Normally when I talk about magic she gets bored and goes to do something else, but apparently flying is something completely different to her. I let her borrow my ring for a little while, and she flew all the way to the roof of the castle! Then she told me she wanted to learn about magic! I suppose she's like my apprentice now…. Oh dear. What have I gotten myself into?"

He read similar entries, memories coming back to him as he read each. He recounted the months and years he had been here in a few hours. Nostalgia settled in as he smiled and sometimes laughed at he and Zoey's past antics. When he came to the blank page, he thought for a moment, then began to write, whispering the words to himself as he went.

"Zoey's birthday party was today. She looked…. Amazing. The dress the tailor made for her was just perfect. It's too bad Lalna had to ruin the evening for her. That idiot…. He was drunk and he was saying things he really shouldn't have. Pissed me off enough that I threw him across the room. I'm beginning to regret that now. I know Xephos will hear about it, and he'll expect a perfectly rational reason as to why I did so. That's not going to be easy, seeing as I wasn't really thinking at the time…. But I'll figure something out, I always do. I gave Zoey her birthday present before I went to bed. To be honest I'd nearly forgotten about it. I would never have heard the end of that one…. But I remembered, luckily. She loved the necklace. When she saw it she was speechless. I was actually a bit worried about it for awhile, but I was right when I thought it would be perfect. She even hugged me, she was so excited. Then we just kind of stood there for a moment, hugging. It was…. I don't even know what it was. I'm confused, frankly. It feels like Zoey and I have gotten weirder around each other, but it's probably just me. I'm probably just over-thinking things, like I always do. Still, I wonder sometimes why I react the way I do towards her… But now's no time to wonder about such things. It's late, and I'm going to sleep, whether my mind agrees or not."

With that Rythian put the journal and quill back on the desk, and settled back into his bed. He turned away from the window, closed his eyes, and practically forced himself to rest. It took awhile, but in about another hour, sleep finally took him into her lulling black embrace.


	6. Chapter 5

Zoey awoke the next morning to the sunlight streaming in her window, and she yawned, stretching as she got up. The pendant Rythian gave her was still on her neck, and she admired it again as it glittered in the sunlight. She had promised herself last night that she would never take it off, and she fully intended to keep that promise. Rythian had really outdone himself with this one….

She got dressed and met him in the hallway, and when they got to the breakfast table, they found Lalna was still hung over from last night, and didn't make it. The meal was mostly silent, until Lomadia noticed Zoey's new necklace. "Where'd the mushroom come from?" She asked, and Zoey smiled.

"Isn't it pretty? Rythian gave it to me for my birthday!" She said excitedly, and Xephos looked at the knight nervously. He was giving her jewelry now?

Well, to be fair he'd given her magical things before, but… Normal jewelry? Rythian felt the king's gaze and looked at him, surprising him slightly. He simply smiled slightly and nodded to him, and Rythian did the same, then went back to teleporting his food into his mouth.

Xephos shook his head slightly. He was over thinking the mage's actions, wasn't he? He had simply wanted to give Zoey a nice birthday present, and he had. Just because it happened to be jewelry didn't mean there was anything going on….

Soon, everyone had finished their meal and headed their separate ways. Lomadia went to the aviary to visit her owls, Xephos went to find Honeydew, and Rythian and Zoey headed to the stables, as was the usual routine. They got their horses and sped off into the forest, finding the clearing with the spring and stopping the horses there. Rythian tied them to a tree while Zoeya sat in the sunlight on the grass.

Rythian came to sit beside her, smiling when he saw she was fingering the necklace he made for her. She smiled up at him, saying "So, what do we do today?" He thought for a moment, theatrically putting a finger to his covered lips. Zoey giggled slightly at this, but quieted when an idea was spoken.

"How about I show you something awesome? I promise you won't be disappointed." He said, and she looked at him skeptically. "What is it, Rythian?"

He smiled, stating matter-of-factly "It's a surprise." At this she frowned, thinking for a moment. She didn't think long before saying excitedly "Okay! I love surprises!"

Rythian chuckled and stood, offering her his hand. She took it and the two walked through the woods for awhile, he leading the way to some unknown destination. Rythian stopped in front of a seemingly impenetrable group of vines deep in the woods. He whispered "Öppna" and they untangled and let the two pass, then closing behind them.

Zoey turned to see the prettiest landscape she'd ever seen. She stood in a clearing completely surrounded by weeping willow and oak trees, sunlight in it's purest form shining onto the grass in the middle. There were flowers of almost all colors growing everywhere, and there was a small waterfall and a pond in one corner that she figured must have been the source of the spring they had been at earlier. Mushrooms even grew underneath the shade of the ring of trees, both brown and red.

She stood still for a moment, taking it all in, but soon exclaimed "It's…. It's gorgeous here, Ryth! How did you find this place?"

He chuckled. "I used to come here when I was young with my mother. She taught me magic here, when I could get away from sword practice." He said, hints of pride in his voice.

Zoey smiled, spinning as she looked around again. "I absolutely cannot get over how pretty this is!" She said, sitting down in the middle of the clearing, basking in the sun's warm glow. Rythian came to sit beside her, saying quietly as he looked at her "Neither can I."

She hadn't heard him, and simply went into babbling on about nature. They stayed like this for hours, Rythian simply listening to Zoey talk most of the time. He didn't mind, he was content enough that she was happy. He had wanted to show her this clearing for awhile, but she'd always come up with something else to entertain them, so he hadn't said anything.

Before the sun set, he handed her her flying ring. "Here," he said "We'll fly back to the horses, that way we'll get to them before dark. I know you don't like to be out at night." She let out the usual excited squeak, and soon the pair were flying above to trees to where Willow and Ghost were tied.

As Rythian had predicted, they got to them as the sun set, so they had to ride back quickly to the castle if they wanted to get out of the forest before night came. They made it, jumping the fence of the pasture just before the sun set fully. They found Tee waiting in the stables with a note for Rythian. He knew what it would say before he had opened it, and the dread filled him quickly.

He only needed to glance at it to know he was right in his predictions. Xephos had heard of last night, and probably from the royal fool himself, Lalna. Rythian was to come alone, and leave Zoey with Tee while he had a conference with the king. Wonderful.

"He's heard." Rythian said plainly, looking to Zoey with a slight hint of panic in his eyes. She seemed just as alarmed as he was, but assured him he would figure out what to say to make things right. "You always do" she said, displaying her usual optimism, but with a serious undertone.

He sighed, looking to Tee. "Stay with Zoey. I know you can keep her safe while I'm gone." The mute nodded, the bow strapped to his back suddenly much more obvious that it had been before.

Rythian walked out calmly, both of them watching him take to the skies as soon as he had cleared the doorway. When he arrived at the main courtyard, he made sure he looked presentable before opening the great doors and striding in, the same aura of calmness about him as before. As he had predicted, Lalna was there. The king and queen sat patiently on their thrones, though Xephos looked ready to burst at the seams with a lecture.

Lalna looked as smug as he always did, though Rythian could tell he was still quite sick from the previous night. He could use that to his advantage. Xephos stood when the doors closed, barely keeping his cool against the rant Rythian knew he would receive. Lomadia looked rather solemn, but she gave a small smile of reassurance to the boy she had always been fond of.

He was grateful, because this meant she would take his side in an argument, and with Lalna there, there was sure to be one. He looked to the king, who shouted "Rythian, WHAT THE HELL were you THINKING?! You threw a guest to the court across a BALLROOM?! Do you have ANY IDEA what kind of ramifications could come from this?!"

Lalna sniggered as the knight was lectured, and though he was used to it, he sensed there was something else to Xephos' rant. There was an undertone to it, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Little did he know, the king had been fed Lalna's most recent lies. Lalna had told him what statement Rythian had reacted to, and had tapped into the protective father inside of him.

He made Xephos believe what he had told that room of people last night. The king's emotions at breakfast hadn't helped, but if anyone was good with words, it was Rythian. He could talk the truth back into him…. If Lalna would just stay quiet.

But that was unlikely. "You give me one good reason I shouldn't ban you from this court right now, Rythian." The monarch soon demanded, looking him in his purple eyes. He spared one last glance at Lomadia before beginning his carefully worded "apology".

"Your Majesty," He began, bowing slightly to him "You have every right to be angry with me, I know that much. I completely understand your frustration, but you must understand something. Your daughter, Princess Zoeya, asked me a few hours before the incident not to let…" he made himself say the next words without an insult in them "Prince Lalna lay a hand on her."

Xephos seemed to be calming, and another small smile from Lomadia encouraged him to continue. "He accused us of things I would never even consider, he was drunk, and I believed him at the time to be a threat to her. I threw him across that ballroom not just because he had angered me, and accused me of actions I would never take, but because I perceived him to be a danger to your daughter." The king stood silently, and Rythian knew there was only one thing left to address as he softened his voice from the critical cold tone to one of sincere apology and honesty.

"I need you to hear this from me, King Xephos. Whatever that man has been telling you about last night -and I know what he's told you about Zoeya and I- is a blatant lie." Lalna opened his mouth to proclaim some other lie, but Rythian gave him his "Shut up or I will kill you" glare. Lalna didn't say a word, and he turned back to the king.

"You know me, Xephos." He said, addressing the king as he normally would instead of the formal language he had started with. "You have known me since I was 2 years old. Do you honestly think that I would ever do something as irresponsible and absurd as Lalna is accusing me of?"

The king looked at the knight, and remembered the day the toddler had approached him, no mask hiding his face and a crazy mess of brown and blonde hair on his head, babbling like toddlers do about his daughter and her future safety. At the time his eyes had been blue, and he remembered the young boy smiling at the baby princess in her mother's arms, who giggled when he did. He remembered the day he had sworn on his own life that he would protect Zoeya at all costs. He remembered so many pieces of Rythian's stay at the castle. So many reasons to let the teenager both he and his wife were so fond of to stay with them.

When he pictured Zoey if he told her he'd banished her guardian… The results weren't pretty. She would either cry, yell, or just stand there, staring at nothing in a whirlwind of mixed emotions. He didn't imagine Lomadia would be too happy with him either as he looked at her now, hoping for guidance.

She looked at him lovingly, her expression saying "you know what's right." He looked back at Rythian who looked at him with only his eyes, his slightly bowed head giving him a sense of innocence that almost made Xephos scoff. He knew what Rythian was capable of, that he could probably crush the entire world under his foot if he wanted, but that he chose not to. He had a feeling he knew why.

He had a purpose to serve here. He couldn't let his power get the better of him. Not with his job. His reason to stay tame was, very simply, Princess Zoeya.

The king snapped back into the present, hearing the pushy blonde prince demand "Well? Banish him already!" He looked to Rythian again, then to his queen. Then he noticed the red head poking through the slightly opened doors.

Rythian turned and followed his gaze, and Zoey stepped into view, her navy dress' skirts flowing behind her as she came to stand beside Rythian, who whispered with concern as he held her shoulders "I thought I told you to stay with Tee." She reached up and removed his arms gently, smiling slightly as she whispered back "I couldn't let you face my dad on your own, could I?" and then came up onto the dais to sit in her own throne. Lalna laughed, puzzling everyone but Rythian.

"Look at this, Xephos! If this isn't evidence that what I say is true, then I don't know what is!" Rythian growled "Haven't you fed him enough of your deceptions for one day, Lalna? Let the king decide himself what he thinks is right, without you yapping in his ear!"

Zoey watched the two's stand off, seeing the same frustration in Rythian that showed at gossip or lying. He absolutely hated lies and he was getting fed up with Lalna's. She looked to her father, and the pleading look in her eyes nearly stopped him dead. "Let him stay, please" it said, with the childish innocence Zoey always had.

He decided then. He couldn't make himself hurt his daughter by banishing Rythian. But he decided something else too. He wouldn't stand for Lalna's arrogance and threat anymore either.

War or not, he refused to put up with this disrespect any longer. He turned to Rythian. "You're right," he said "I don't believe you would do something like that, either of you." He glanced at his daughter, and Lalna was struck dumb in shock.

"You may stay, Rythian. However, I expect you to tell me next time if something like this happens." The mage smiled wide, and thanked the king. Zoey smiled as well, and Rythian felt Lalna's eyes glaring into his back as he walked up to stand beside the king and Zoey, taking his usual spot.

"Lalna." Xephos said, and the prince looked to him. "As King of Tekkitopia, I demand that you leave my court by dawn. It is obvious to me that you are a threat to the princess' well being, and as such I cannot allow you to stay here."

Lalna began to protest, but Xephos raised a hand for silence and stopped him. "It is completely your decision if you wish to declare war for my actions. In fact, you probably will. But for now… Get the hell out of my kingdom."

The foreigner grumbled angrily, but a step forward by Rythian with his hand on his sword hilt and an almost taunting look in his eyes stopped any chance of protest. He shot an "I'm not done with you" look to Zoey before spinning on his heel and stalking out of the room. Once the doors shut behind him, Rythian chuckled, looking to Xephos and relaxing his stance, taking his hand from his sword hilt. Xephos chuckled as well, and though he'd been raving mad at the Shadow Guardian only a few minutes before, the two high-fived at the banishment of the stuck up and arrogant Prince Lalna.

Zoey and Lomadia laughed, both rolling their eyes at the two's antics. The four of them talked for another hour or so before Zoey grew impatient and bouncy, bugging Rythian to come do something with her. Finally, he gave in and allowed her to drag him outside, bidding the king and queen goodnight as he did. The two laughed and said goodnight, watching Zoeya drag her guardian out the door impatiently.

When they reached the courtyard beneath Zoey's window, she sat on a bench, pulling him down beside her. She looked at the night sky, and pointed out to Rythian that it was a full moon. He smiled, watching her as she looked in awe at the stars' majesty. The necklace he made for her hung at her neck, but the clasp was in front with the pendant.

This bothered Rythian enough that he reached down and fixed it for her, only realizing how close he was to her after he'd already done it. His hand was still holding onto the clasp at the back of her neck when his eyes flicked to hers for a second, and he stopped dead in his tracks. The stars and moon reflected in her blue eyes, making them sparkle more than they normally did. He found he was transfixed all of a sudden.

He couldn't make himself look away from her, and for a reason he simply couldn't figure out. He had the same effect on Zoey, apparently. She didn't say or do anything to deter him, though it's not like he could really do anything anyways. He was just as stuck as she was, after all.

Rythian didn't know how long they sat there before he finally snapped out of it, taking his hands away from her neck and clearing his throat in an attempt to hide his embarrassment. Zoey blinked a couple times before shaking her head sharply and muttering "Thanks, that bothers me too." He nodded and began turning his rings around on his fingers as his nerves got to him. Zoey watched him, letting out a yawn or two before asking Rythian if she could go to bed now.

He looked at her from the corner of his eye, seeing how she kept glancing at the pocket she knew by now held get flying ring. He sighed, rolling his eyes. "I swear you drag me out here just so you can fly to bed." He produced the ring from his pocket and handed it to her, and she happily slipped it in her finger and flew into her window, Rythian following close behind.

She gave him the ring back once he landed softly on the stone floor, and promptly told him to go to bed. He complied, and wished her goodnight before heading into his own room, smiling slightly at her bluntness. Once in, he sat down on his bed and ran his hands through his hair, taking a deep breath. His thoughts kept revisiting the moment he had been fixing Zoey's necklace…

Why had he frozen up so suddenly? All he'd done was looked at her. He did that all the time… So why was then different from any of the other times?

He remembered how close they had seemed, how everything around them just kind of faded off. He'd been around Zoey almost his entire life, and there had been quite a few times that they had been closer to each other than that. Again he raised the question; why was that moment or two so different? Why had it seemed like time had stopped around them?

He shook his head. He simply couldn't explain it. There was just this feeling he couldn't identify when it had happened, but it didn't feel new…. Just magnified.

Like something that had always been there, but was never there enough for him to really notice. He sat for hours trying to identify it, but with no success. Even after he attempted to lay down and go to sleep, his thoughts persisted. He asked himself the same questions, hoping after so many repetitions something would snap into place, but nothing did.

He went to sleep that night puzzling over it. Over why everything had happened the way it did. The reason still escaped him even in his dreams, where the scene played over in his head, seeping into his subconscious. The answer seemed to be on the tip of his tongue, waiting to be spoken, but he couldn't make himself, for whatever reason.

That's the way this type of thing normally goes though, isn't it?


	7. Chapter 6

Rythian woke up in the morning and got out of bed rather grudgingly, yawning. He had barely slept again last night, and the seemingly endless cycle of insomnia was beginning to wear on him. He shook himself awake anyways and grabbed one of his potions of strength off his desk, drinking it down before dressing himself and combing his hair. Before he put his mask on, he made the mistake of glancing at his mirror.

The deep scars that tore up his lower jaw and mouth, the lines of pale skin against his tan complexion, stopped him. His stomach churned at the memories, at the feelings of insecurity and shame they brought him. He hated the scars. They were nothing but permanent, ugly reminders of what had happened to him all those years ago…..

He shook his head sharply. He wouldn't think about it anymore, he decided as he turned away from the mirror again. He tied the mask around his face tightly and pulled on his boots, fastening his black cape around his shoulders as he forced the image of his own scarred face out of his mind. He met Zoey in the corridor, and the two then went to the dining hall.

They enjoyed an uneventful breakfast before walking to the stables to get Ghost and Willow and head to the woods. There they found Tee, bow slung over his shoulder and quiver at his hip, waiting for them. "What are you doing here, Teep?" Zoey asked, and he face-palmed.

"Zoey," Rythian said patiently "He's mute, remember? He can only answer yes or no questions." Zoey let out an exasperated sigh, and apologized. "Oh yeah, sorry, I forgot."

Rythian then turned to him. "Okay Tee," he said, and he looked at him. "I'm guessing you want to go with us, correct?" He asked, and the teen nodded.

Rythian then turned to Zoey. "Is that fine with you?" He asked, and she said happily "Sure! Maybe then he can show us how good he's gotten with his bow!"

Again the black haired boy nodded, and grabbed his brown horse from it's stall. Since Teep was mute, no one really knew what it's name was, but Zoey always called it Paul, and he never showed that he didn't like that name, so it stuck. Zoey and Rythian got Willow and Ghost, and soon the trio were riding leisurely through the forest. Zoey rode slightly ahead of the two boys, chattering about how cool it was that Tee was with them today and that they should all go riding together more often, but soon slipped into talking of mushrooms and the like.

He and Rythain simply exchanged a look that said "yep, she's crazy" and followed behind her lazily. The three reached the clearing with the spring, and tied the horses to a tree. Zoey and Rythian sat on the grass and watched as Tee showed how good he was with his bow. A couple times Rythian would summon magic targets for him to hit that flew around in a random pattern.

He only missed one of them. Both Rythian and Zoey were impressed with the mute's accomplishments, but soon Zoey grew curious. She was always told that her guardian was talented with all weapons, and now she wanted to see just how good he was… But she didn't want to hurt Teep's feelings if he was better, either.

The hours ticked by and Zoey kept her wishes to herself, but when dinner time neared, Tee had to leave to help with the preparations. When he was safely out of earshot, Zoey said a bit too eagerly "Hey Rythian?" He turned to her, asking cautiously "What?" She smiled innocently, but he wasn't fooled.

"Can you shoot as well as Tee can? You know, being supposedly so skilled at everything and all?" He sighed. "Not everything, Zoey, but yes, I shoot pretty well."

Again she smiled. "Can you show me? Pretty please!" She begged, and he rolled his eyes.

But, he knew however hard he tried that he couldn't tell her no. He sighed in defeat. "Fine, but let's go to my clearing, okay?" She clapped excitedly and agreed, taking his hand and following him there.

Once inside the closed-in space, he walked to the water fall, and removed a stone from the rocky hill. There there was a hole, and inside it sat a full set of Gem Armor, a sheathed sword, and a black bow that shone with the purple glow of an enchantment. He pulled it out, casting a nervous glance at the sword before replacing the rock again and turning back to Zoey. She marveled at the bow for a minute, but then shook herself out of the stupor and watched him pull an arrow out of his alchemical bag.

"What do you want me to shoot, exactly?" He asked, turning to her, and she looked around for a moment before spotting an apple in one of the trees. She pointed to it. "There" she said, and he strung the arrow and aimed.

He loosed it in a second or two, and she watched it fly and cut the apple loose from it's stem. It fell to the ground with a thud, and she smiled. "Satisfied?" He asked, walking over and picking it up.

He chucked the apple to her, and she only barely caught it before it hit her. He chuckled, slinging the bow over his shoulder, turning around to get the arrow lodged in another tree, and she crossed her arms, frustrated. She moved to throw it at him, but before she could, he teleported behind her and held her wrist, still chuckling. Zoey froze, surprised.

He took the apple back and said teasingly "Not a good idea to throw things at me, Zoey."

She laughed, and he released her wrist as she joked back "No, I guess it's not, is it?" He put the apple in his bag and went to put the bow back, but Zoey stopped him with a question. "What enchantments are on your bow, Ryth?"

He looked at it for a second, seeing the small engraving on the side which he read aloud. "Infinity X, Unbreaking X, and Power II." She smiled slightly. "It's really styilin' for a weapon. Who made it?"

He rolled his eyes at her choice of words, but answered her question anyways. "My father made it and my mom enchanted it. It was my 6th birthday present." Zoey seemed a bit shocked.

"Okay first of all, you got a bow and arrows for your 6th birthday?! Second, how is it still your size? I doubt you were as big as you are now when you were six!" She exclaimed, and Rythian sighed.

"Zoey, you have to remember I didn't exactly have a normal childhood. Also, the bow itself is magic, hence it's unusual color. It changes size and flexibility to suit me when I pick it up." He explained, and Zoey rolled her eyes.

"Does everything with you have to be so complicated?" She asked incredulously as he put the bow back in it's hole and replaced the stone again. He laughed. "Apparently so," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

The two messed around for another hour or so before making their way back to their horses. Before they set off for the castle, though, Rythian noticed a familiar smell. He froze when he recognized it. Something rather big was burning in the direction of the castle.

He quickly took to the sky and hovered above the tree-line, and from there he saw a wall of orange and red moving quickly towards them. He fell quickly back down to Zoey, saying hurriedly "The forests' on fire! ….Someone's trying to prevent us from getting back to the castle!" Zoey was stunned, but Rythian was in full code red mode, pulling her onto her horse and leading both horses quickly back to his clearing.

He grabbed his things out of his hidden crevice, wincing slightly when he touched the sword's hilt. He threw his armor on and checked over his weapons before rushing to get Zoey moving again. He spat out a quick incantation while touching each of the horses that allowed them to be as fire resistant as if they were wearing Vulcanite Amulets. He strung Zoey's around her neck and handed her the emerald sword he kept for her, and she took it with shaky hands.

"Zoey, look at me" he said as they faced the quickly advancing wall of fire, the horses not quite sure whether to run away or charge. She complied, and they locked eyes. "Everything is going to be fine, just stay with me, okay?" He said, trying to reassure her, and she nodded grimly.

They charged into the wall of fire, running straight through it until the castle came into view. Sure enough, Rythian's predictions had been right. An attack was being launched on the castle, messes of soldiers swarming at the walls and gates. Rythian saw a few heading for the pasture that lead directly into the inner sanctum of the fortress, and pulled his bow and shot them down.

He gave Zoey a set of Dark Matter Armor he had on him and told her to follow him. With that, he charged through the battle, jumping the fences to the pastures to find Tee on the stables' roof, shooting down anyone who tried to enter. He almost shot them, but Rythian flashed his purple eyes with a quick burst of light, and the boy held his fire to let the two pass. They didn't bother putting the horses away, but ran straight for where the war room was.

They had to find Xephos and Lomadia, quickly. When they pushed through the doors, they found both monarchs and their entire council of advisers huddled around a table, having a rather heated discussion. Lomadia let out a cry of relief at the sight of her daughter, and Xephos let out a relieved sigh. Honeydew and the rest of the council were busy looking over a table full of maps and charts, planning the right move to make.

"Rythian, take Zoey and Lomadia, get them to safety, and I'll find you when this is over." Xephos said over the bang of canons outside. Lomadia began to protest, but one stern look from her husband silenced her. He turned back to Rythian, shouting "Go!"

He nodded and the two women followed him hastily out the door, Zoey now alert from realizing severity of the situation around her. They had time to go to each of their rooms and grab whatever they absolutely needed before running hell for leather down corridors and into secret passages to escape the castle. They grabbed their horses from the pasture, where they found Teep waiting there with Paul. He gave his horse to the queen, and she thanked him immensely before the three of them sped away from their home.

Rythian shot or cut down anyone in his way, his instincts taking over as his brain fumbled to make even a single relevant thought. Before they escaped into what was left of the forest, he saw who was leading the attack. The unmistakable blonde hair and white coat of Prince Lalna of Ciencia caught his eye. 'You'll pay for this, Lalna' he thought angrily as he turned his attention back to the task at hand; protect Lomadia and Zoey.

They rode through the forest for what felt like forever before they came to the end, the trees giving way in an abrupt line to fields. They rode through these as well, only stopping when they reached the towering Nether Brick structure that was Rythian's family estate. They put the horses in the stables and removed any and all battle gear before he pushed the doors open and strode in, Zoey and Lomadia following close behind. He took his helmet off and looked around.

The obsidian floors still shined as he remembered, a glowstone chandelier illuminating the main entryway as it always had. He went to where he knew his mother would be: the top floor where she practiced her magic and read her books. His father had died when he was 7, and since then his mother had spent most of her time there. She and Rythian had been exchanging letters over the years, one every 2 weeks.

This helped him keep tabs on her, make sure she was doing okay and all that. When he ascended the stairs, she heard him coming and met him at the top, smiling and hugging him, saying "Rythian, you're home! How long has it been since I last saw you here?!" After this she went into the usual mom thing with "look how tall you've gotten" and "my little boy's growing up so fast!"

After this she turned to the queen and princess, and addressed them as nobles should with royalty, but she still couldn't hide her excitement that her son was there. Rythian simply smiled, and soon she ushered everyone downstairs to the dining room, clearing her research and tomes off the desk and calling one of the servants to bring refreshments. It was only when that servant left did Rythian remember why he was here, why he had Lomadia with him, and why Zoey was still looking a bit startled. His mother picked up on his mood change and said calmly "So, there's obviously a reason you dragged both the princess and the queen out here, Rythian."

He nodded grimly, and explained what had happened as quickly as he could. After the explanation, his mother sat in quiet thought for a moment or two. The two looked at each other and had a silent conversation using facial expressions and their eyes. They had done this so many times it was like second nature, but the topic was much more serious than it ever was before.

'What do I need to do to help?' His mom asked, and he replied 'Keep us hidden, just for the time being, until I can figure out our next move. With any luck King Xephos will soon return for Lomadia and give me further instructions. But for now, we sit tight.'

His mother nodded, which normally meant 'Fair enough.' Rythian couldn't help but smile a little. He turned back to Zoey and Lomadia and told them that the three of them would stay here for awhile until Xephos returned, as he had told his mother. It was then that the snacks arrived, and the four of them ate and talked for awhile.

Afterwards, Rythian's mother said "Ryth, why don't you show Zoeya around? I want to talk with the queen awhile." He eyed her nervously, but nodded, he and Zoey standing and walking out of the dining hall. He showed her the lounge, main kitchen, the guest bedrooms where she and her mother would be sleeping, showed her where his mom's room was, and then his room.

When Zoey stepped into the purple-carpeted room with books and papers stacked nearly everywhere, a large 4-poster oak bed with purple sheets, and a set of glass doors leading to a balcony overlooking the main garden, she felt suddenly very at home. This was the only room in the whole estate that made her feel like she was back at home. It felt like she was in Rythian's room at the castle, and this in turn made her feel…. Safe.

She smiled, saying as she stepped around his piles of books to get to the balcony "You really were this messy your whole life, weren't you?" He laughed slightly, hovering just above the books and below the ceiling, beating her to the double doors and opening them for her when she finally made it over. As she stepped onto the balcony, he lingered in the doorway, watching her take in the gardens his mother was so proud of.

She was definitely impressed. Cobblestone paths weaved their ways from the outer rim of the circular garden in snake-like lines to an elevated gazebo with a domed roof in the center, curved stone stairs leading directly up to it. Where there wasn't stone, there were flowers of every color in the rainbow. They were blended together perfectly, making the entire thing look like an artist had painted it on a canvas.

She gasped, and he smiled, coming to stand beside her. He leaned on the railing and came to Zoey's eye level, watching her awestricken face with a hint of pride. She smiled wide, saying quietly to him "Do you ALWAYS have gorgeous places to show me?" He chuckled at this, saying "My mom has an eye -and the patience- for making beautiful things."

"She's pretty cool. You must be happy to have a mom like that." Zoey said, finally tearing her eyes away from the garden to look at Rythian. He was staring off into space, but nodded, saying "Yeah, I definitely am." Zoey knew his dad was dead, that he had died when he was young.

She'd never had the courage to ask him how it had happened, or why. It was personal territory she felt he would tell her if he wanted her to know. It was just too sensitive to bring up for him, and she knew that. And yet….

She wondered, looking at the garden, what had happened to him. Her father always said his death had been an accident. A misunderstanding…. But she knew it was something more than that, somehow.

Rythian sensed her curiosity, and a feeling of deep dread filled him. When she was curious, nothing stopped her from asking the question she wanted answered. And even if she didn't ask, it would bother her immensely until she did. He hated when she was troubled.

And so, he braced himself to answer her questions, though he wasn't quite sure what she would ask. Needless to say he wasn't prepared when she did ask "Rythian..?" He looked to her, faking a smile and raising his eyebrows. She hesitated a moment.

"…..What happened to your dad?" She asked, watching him closely and carefully gaging his reaction as best she could. All joviality drained from him, his eyes seeming to dull and fade. He leaned a little more on the railing, like standing up was just too much for him. She felt guilty for making him this way, but as always her curiosity got the better of her.

He sighed heavily, subconsciously touching the mask on his face, pulling it up a bit higher. "It has to do with the mask, doesn't it?" Zoey stated, and he nodded glumly. An awkward silence settled over them as Rythian stared at the courtyard, debating what and if to tell her.

Zoey suddenly felt the pressing need to escape, the desperate fear that she would anger him or hurt him now taking control. She turned from him hastily, quickly saying "Actually, you don't have to tell me. I think I'll just…" She tried to step off the balcony, to escape from the stress and just be alone for awhile, but Rythian grabbed her arm, stopping her.

She flinched slightly and slowly turned back around to him as he practically pleaded with her, his purple eyes desperate, "No!" The panic in his voice startled her, and he sighed and dropped her hand, closing his eyes before looking at her again. "No, please… I-I knew you would ask eventually, I might as well tell you now."

His voice had a melancholy tone, making him sound so depressed and broken. She wanted to tell him to just forget it. It caused him too much pain, and she couldn't bare to see anyone, much less him like that… But she also couldn't just leave him to suffer with the memories she had brought up on his own, either….

She hesitated a second longer before stepping back to her former spot, looking at Rythian with the gentle eyes she used with frightened animals. He sighed again, then began to recount the events of the day he had blocked from his memory for so long. "The day it happened, the three of us were outside the estate on one of my rare days off from practices or lessons… We were in the woods near the border with Ciencia, and it was supposed to be a time of peace…."

He sighed again and continued, staring into space as he saw it in his mind. "We were having a picnic, I was only 7 or so, and mom and I went to find some apples to eat with our bread and chicken…. A small group of Ciencian soldiers was thundering through the forest, drunken and angry, and we heard them coming. Mom and I ducked behind a few trees and waited until they passed to even breath.

Then we heard my dad, screaming in pain. I panicked, and ran towards the sound…. I was desperate to save him, to help him in any way I could, and my mom chased after me, begging me to come back. I wouldn't listen, I had to help my father.

I got to the clearing and saw them beating him to death, taking turns kicking him…. I snapped, running in there with my katar and threatening them with it. They laughed me off, and turned back to my father…." He took a shaky breath, closing his eyes tight against his emotions.

"My dad kept telling me to run. To find my mom and get her home…. But I couldn't just leave him there! …I stabbed one of them as he was about to kick him again.

He died almost instantly after I pulled the sword out of his heart. Then it's just a blur of fighting as they all turned on me. I held my own for awhile, but they were 10 times stronger than me…. One of them pinned me down, and the rest of them took turns beating me like they did my father…."

He opened his eyes and looked into space again, apparently seeing things he didn't like in his minds' eye. "Some sort of custom in Ciencia is for every man to wear rings that represent power. Lords and Ladies wear at least 4 a hand, and the scale goes down from there… Their rings cut my face up bad enough after the repeated beatings that I still have scars."

Zoey looked to the mask on his face, and, feeling he had nothing left to lose, Rythian pulled it down. She gasped at the thin lines that covered his slightly crooked lower jaw, lips, and neck, reaching out to gently run her finger along one that cut across his left cheek. He looked at her, eyes soft but still sad, and his lips twitched slightly at her despite the depression he felt. He held her hand there for a moment, marveling at how foreign skin felt to that portion of him now.

After a minute he let her go, and she dropped her hand. "What happened?" She asked, returning to the original topic. He sighed again, pulling his mask back on as he spoke.

"They got bored after awhile and left us both there to die. Then my mother crept into the clearing, gasping at our conditions. She started pumping healing spells into my father, but he pushed her hands away weakly. 'No,' he'd said 'Heal Rythian, he'll need all your strength.'"

Rythian sighed again. "She argued with him for a long time, but he kept insisting she heal me…. She eventually listened to him, and spent hours healing me. The only thing she couldn't fix were the scars."

Zoey covered her mouth with her hand in shock. She couldn't have chosen between her only child and her husband if she'd had to, but Cecilia had done it…. Somehow. Rythian continued.

"When she'd healed me, she'd turned to him, telling him she'd done it, that she could heal him now…" He took a shaky breath and closed his eyes for a second before opening them again, running his hands through his hair. "H-He was already dead by then… And not even she could bring someone back from the dead."

Rythian leaned on the rail again, hands gripping it tightly as he fought with his own emotions. Zoey reached out and gently rested her own hand on his, and his grip lessened a little. "She tried for hours to bring him back, all the time crying her eyes out. I blamed myself, hated myself, for not being strong enough, for not being there to stop those men from killing him…."

Again Zoey brought her hand to her mouth. It didn't seem possible for him to sound and feel so broken. He was too strong, too sure and steady to sound like that… He didn't seem like the same person as he continued on.

"That's what made me train so much harder. I refused to let anyone else suffer because I wasn't good enough. Not again. I wear the mask because I didn't want people to pity me or think me weak because of my scars."

Rythian sighed. "My mom took it just as hard as I did, I'm sure, but I've always felt guilty. That's another reason I wear my mask. I can't deal with the pain and guilt the memories give me."

Before Zoey knew what she was doing, she hugged him. He stood there for a second, shocked into stillness, but when she looked up at him and said "I'm so sorry, Ryth… I shouldn't have brought it up" he felt a pang of something in his heart, and he hugged her back awkwardly.

"It's okay," he said rather uneasily. He was really bad with people, even if he'd spent 5 years of his life with them. Zoey realized her error and stepped back, mumbling apologies again. Rythian laughed nervously, getting the acute feeling someone was watching them.

He glanced in every direction, saw nothing, and acted like he felt no sign of the intrusion of their conversation. He knew when there was someone present, and there definitely was someone, but he let it slide. He knew the magic barriers surrounding the fortress kept anyone with malicious intent or evil in their hearts out, so no one of any threat could be there, but… He hated eavesdropping, useful as it may be sometimes.

The two stayed on the terrace for awhile longer, talking of happier things after such a serious and frankly depressing conversation. They didn't really know how long they stayed there, just talking and laughing. The feeling in Rythian's chest felt like it was swelling when she laughed or smiled at him. They enjoyed themselves for the few hours before the estate's set curfew, Rythian even giving her the flying ring to fly down to the garden, keeping a watchful eye on her from the balcony above as she examined and named off all the flowers and other plants.

Rythian was right in his predictions of an eavesdropper. Shielded behind a magic film of invisibility, his mother had watched from his doorway. She wanted to see for herself the connection Lomadia said the two shared, even if they didn't know it. She saw that she was definitely right, through the way her son looked at the young princess and the way she looked at him.

There was no denying the two shared a special connection…. And Rythian was sure to have realized the feelings that were obviously stirred by the fire-haired princess. "He probably has no idea what's going on" his mother thought, and she decided that she would have to talk with him for a little while, alone…. But tomorrow.

Everyone needed rest, herself included. She walked some ways down the hall before removing the thin layer of magic from around her body, making herself visible again as she mulled in her own thoughts. Rythian, her little boy, and the princess of the kingdom they lived in…. What a story, eh?


	8. Chapter 7

"Ryth, sweetie, can you come here for a minute?" Cecilia asked gently when she found he and Zoeya in the gardens the next morning. She could tell he smiled at her, excusing himself from Zoey's company to talk to his mother. She led him to a shaded corner of the garden beneath a tree, and he asked seriously "What's going on, mom?"

She smiled, assuring him she just needed to talk to him for a few moments about something minor. Oh, how she lied at his expense. He smiled back, and Cecilia saw Zoey's eyes on them from across the garden.

She smiled at the young princess, who smiled in return and went back to watching a butterfly that was perched on a tiger lily. Rythian followed his mother's gaze and looked to the princess himself. She felt his eyes on her and looked back up at him, smiling a small, timid smile. Again Cecilia knew he returned the smile, just by the look in his eyes.

Now was the time to talk, for sure. "Rythian," she said, averting his attention from his friend "Did you notice anything, just now when you looked at Zoey, that felt new or odd to you?" Rythian looked puzzled, asking "Why? What do you mean?"

She sighed heavily. "Please, honey, answer me honestly." He looked at her again, and at the same time she happened to glance at him. Their eyes locked for a split second, and as they gazed at each other for a moment or two, Cecilia knew the answer to her question.

After Zoey had looked away, Rythian looked to his mother, and unable to form words, motioned for her to follow him. He took the the skies and flew up to his bedroom's balcony, wading through his books to get to his bed, and digging under his pillows for a certain book: his journal. He had grabbed it while he, Lomadia, and Zoey were fleeing the castle. He flipped to the entry from 2 days ago, and handed it to her, saying "This can explain better than I can aloud."

Most people would not openly offer their mothers to read their journals, but Rythian trusted his mother to keep his secrets, as she trusted him to keep hers. They had a relationship most parents only wished they had with their children… One of understanding and trust. Cecilia took the leather-bound book and he flew slightly off the ground, eager to get to Zoeya again.

She understood the gesture. "We'll talk later, when we won't be disturbed." She said, and watched him go to the princess, landing gracefully next to her as she watched the same butterfly as earlier, now on a different flower. And so, she escaped to her study, journal in hand and her son's words in her head.

When Rythian did return to Zoey, she said excitedly "Look, Ryth, the red butterfly's on a purple flower!" He smiled down at her, saying "Why yes it is…" She turned and beamed at him, and after his mother had mentioned it, he'd become more aware of that small twinge in his chest. He felt his heart skip a beat, and though he still didn't understand what Cecilia had been getting at, took note of it to tell her later.

She turned back to the butterfly to see it flying away. "Oh no! Come back, butterfly, please?" She cried, sounding quite distressed. Rythian chuckled, reaching his finger out, using just a small hint of magic to call the butterfly to it.

Zoey gasped when it landed on his finger as calmly as it had landed on the flower. He turned to her, smiling a small smile at her amazement. He took her hand and held her own finger to his, urging the butterfly onto it. The red monarch butterfly crawled obediently to Zoey as she watched in awe.

She giggled as it's small legs tickled her finger, withdrawing from Rythian's hand and watching the butterfly closely. Rythian smiled, when suddenly he heard a familiar raven's call. It was his personal messenger bird from the palace, the one Lomadia had helped him train himself. Zoey recognized it too, and turned in the direction of the sound. He held his arm out for the black bird to land on, and as it did, saw the piece of paper tied to it's leg.

"Zoey, let's go find your mom, shall we?" He said, untying the note, keeping the bird on his right arm. She frowned slightly, and he asked the butterfly to stay with Zoey. In response, it crawled up her arm and onto the back of her head, latching onto her like a hair clip.

She giggled, and Rythian said jokingly "I suggest you give that butterfly a name. It looks like it's going to stay with you awhile." She smiled at him, figuring this was his doing. "Hmmm…." She said, thinking hard as they walked off to find Cecilia and Lomadia.

The raven was now on Rythian's shoulder, ruffling it's feathers in his ear. He had named it Corvo when he was young. Zoey thought for a moment or two before exclaiming "I've got the perfect name! Daisy!"

She reached back and held her finger to the butterfly. It crawled onto it, and she brought it in front of her face. She, being the silly person she was, asked it whether it liked the name Daisy. It flapped it's wings twice in response, and she smiled brightly.

She looked to Rythian as Daisy flew back to her former position on the back of her head, smiling at him. Just then they arrived at the doors to the lounge where Rythian knew both Lomadia and his mother were. When he walked in, Zoey slightly trailing behind him for once in her life, Cecilia laughed at their animal company. "Apparently," she said jovially "I'm running a zoo now."

At this Zoey giggled, but Lomadia's eyes were on the note in Rythian's hand that had the wax seal of the royal family on it. He came and sat beside her, Zoey sitting beside him, and Cecilia standing behind Rythian and Zoey. He opened the letter carefully, and skimmed quickly over it's contents before reading it aloud. Lomadia and Zoey listened more intently than Cecilia, which was understandable.

"Rythian, Zoey and Lomadia, after the battle at the castle, I'm alright, as is my entire council -save a few minor cuts on Honeydew, as usual- and the servants of the castle. We drove Lalna's forces back within the hour you left, with help, of course, from anyone who could in the castle… Zoey, when you told me Tee could shoot, you didn't tell me he was practically a sniper! I've put him in the official ranks of the Royal Archers as a sharp-shooter for his bravery yesterday…. But this is the start of a very long war. As safe as things may be now, I want you three to stay there until this is all over, preferably. I'll visit soon, I promise, but for now, goodbye. -King Xephos"

Rythian handed the letter to Lomadia as her hands reached for it, reading it over to herself again. Zoey smiled slightly, saying excitedly "Tee's an official sharp-shooter, Rythian! I'm so happy for him!" He smiled and nodded, but noticed his mother was on the other side of the room, sitting in her favorite arm chair and reading what he recognized as his journal.

He sighed, standing and grabbing a piece of paper from his alchemical bag along with his magic quill that never ran out of ink. He quickly wrote a reply that said they were glad everyone was fine, and they hoped he could visit within the week. All true things, to be sure, he thought to himself as he tied the note to Corvo's grey leg and took him back outside to the gardens, sending him on his way to the castle. Cecilia had followed him, Zoey still sitting on the purple couch in the lounge, messing about with Daisy the butterfly, Lomadia watching her.

"You've read it all, I assume?" Rythian said, referring to the journal, and breaking the short yet awkward silence. His mother nodded. "Yes, I have."

She handed it to him and he took it, placing the black ribbon bookmark carefully back where it belonged before closing the large leather book. "Rythian," Cecilia began gently "We need to talk, okay?" He sighed, sitting down on a stone bench in the gazebo in the center of the gardens, sounding rather exhausted when he asked "About Zoey, I'm guessing?"

His mom simply nodded, and he sighed heavily. "I don't know what it is, mom, this weird feeling I get around her. I've never felt it before, or at least not enough for me to notice…" He began, frustrated with himself for being clueless.

Knowledge was part of power, and if he wanted to keep the oath he'd made to himself 9 years ago and the one he'd made to the entire kingdom 5 years ago, he would need all he could get. Cecilia sat beside him, putting a comforting hand on his arm. He looked at her then, his little mother, so short compared to him yet carrying an aura of order and calm with her everywhere. "I understand, sweetie, I do… So don't get upset when I say that feeling is love."

Rythian simply sat there for a second. Love? Fear swelled inside him. When Xephos came to visit, what if he jumped to the same conclusions he had as when Lalna was here?

What if he was never allowed to see Zoey again? What if he was exiled? So many thoughts were swimming through his head, and Cecilia could tell. She knew what he was going to say before he even said it.

"That's….. That's not possible." He said, shaking his head sharply to snap himself out of his thoughts, and she frowned. How did she know he would react like this?

"You're not making sense. I don't love Zoeya, mom. I can't." He said, a hint of panic slipping into his voice.

She sighed. "I know it when I see it, Rythian, you remember your father-" She began, only to be cut off by Rythian, his panic now evident. "No, mom, don't bring him up, please. It only causes pain for both of us…."

He was right when he said it, but still she continued. "Ryth, just listen. Your father got this spark in his eyes when he looked at you, or looked at me, or anyone else he cared for, or loved. Every time you look at her, -and I mean EVERY TIME- it appears in your eyes too."

Rythian was puzzled into silence for a moment. Then he stood, sounding like Honeydew when he gave an order. He was sure of himself, or at least it sounded like it. "I can't love Zoeya mom, you know that as much as I do."

But even as he turned away from her and walked back inside, he knew that even now as he wanted to run off into a corner of the woods and think, that he wasn't going in the direction of the stables, or even the front gate. He was headed for Zoey, both wanting and not wanting to see her. He hovered above the ground in front of the door, hesitating. Cecilia was not far behind him, though he wasn't aware of her presence, as he was too caught up in his own thoughts.

'Just act normal' he thought to reassure himself 'This will all go away after awhile. If I do love her…. Then I guess I'll just have to get over myself. I can't love her, she's the princess for Notch's sake!'

Building up the emotional wall he'd built so long ago around his heart, he pushed the doors open and strode in, though he still hovered ever so slightly above the ground. Zoey looked up at him and smiled, saying "Hey Ryth! Daisy's tangled in my hair, can you get her out?" He sighed submissively, and walked behind the couch she sat on, seeing the butterfly was quite tangled, frantically wiggling around and trying to flap it's wings.

He spoke a few magic words to calm it and make it stop squirming, and then set to work gently untangling the frightened creature from Zoey's mess of red hair. Lomadia watched the two with interest, apparently surprised that Rythian could be gentle enough not to break the creature's fragile wings or legs. After quite a few tense and silent minutes, the butterfly flew free from the princess' hair. She giggled when it landed on her arm, crawling to the tip of her finger and staying there.

Cecilia watched too, and Rythian avoided looking in her direction, not quite sure what to think about what she'd said. Again the thought crossed his mind: 'I don't love Zoey. I can't.' His mother only looked on with knowing eyes, eyes that for once in his life unsettled him.

"I think I'll go out for a bit and fly around." He announced, deciding he needed to think about this somewhere it was quiet and he could be alone. Of course Zoey wasn't having that, asking excitedly "Can I come too Rythian?"

He only had to look at her for a moment or two before he sighed in defeat. "Alright, fine. I suppose you must be rather bored sitting inside all day. Come on, we'll fly over the north wall."

He tossed her her flying ring and she caught it, though he turned away from her and everyone else, quickly stalking across the room and to the door. Confused, she didn't emit the usual excited squeak, simply slipping the ring on and following hastily behind him. He didn't speak until they reached the wall on the other end of the castle, saying "There's an Enderman around here somewhere… But it's day time…"

Zoey listened as he pulled out his katar with lazy hands, looking around calmly. After a few moments, she heard the sound too. The unmistakable screech of and Enderman. Rather close by, too.

Suddenly it appeared behind her, and Rythian spat an incantation when he saw it that froze it in place. He pulled Zoey behind him, and when she saw why he had, she gasped. He quickly killed the evil creature, asking Zoey if she was alright as he sheathed his sword again. She simply nodded, indifferent.

With a new caution Rythian led her over the wall, and Zoey noticed a sensation throughout her when she passed over it that she hadn't before. Like someone was scanning her. When she asked Rythian about it he said it was a magic bubble around the estate. It kept anything evil out, which was why the Enderman had surprised him.

"Normally they can't get in," he said thoughtfully "But somehow that one did. I'll have to reinforce it again, I guess." Zoey accepted this answer, and the two of them fell into another tense silence. She knew something was bothering him, and she wanted to know what, but she didn't want to pry and make him mad at her.

The talk about his father yesterday had depressed him enough, after all. If it was something serious, she didn't want to upset him again. Daisy flew lazily beside her, and she slowed herself a bit so she wouldn't lose her new insect friend. Rythian slowed too, so that he didn't leave Zoeya lost over woods that were foreign to her.

Even in his stupefied state he knew better than to leave her unprotected. The Enderman had reminded him of that. Still, he kept to himself, and Zoey grew increasingly more worried, but was too distracted by Daisy to ask about it. She was quite attached to the small creature, even after only about half an hour.

Finally Rythian began to descend after flying for 5 more minutes. Zoey followed him, and the red butterfly followed her. The trio landed in a clearing with a small pond, and a little cabin sitting beside it. Zoey rolled her eyes and said "Another of your hiding places, Rythian?"

He chuckled despite his current mood, and nodded, motioning for her to follow him into the wooden structure. She did, and, upon entering, sneezed. The place was covered in dust, thick and choking in the air. She immediately opened a few windows to let the air circulate while Rythian appeared to look for a book on the dust-coated bookshelves that covered the west wall.

Frustrated by the lack of light, he lit the small fireplace with his Ring of Ignition without looking. With anyone else Zoey would've been worried, but she knew Rythian knew what he was doing. "Aha!" He exclaimed when he found what he was looking for; a book entitled "Myths and Mysteries of Minecraftia".

He pulled on the book, and Zoey watched in awe as a spiral staircase opened in the center of the room. "How…?" was all she managed to say before Rythian explained timidly "I may or may not have experimented with redstone a little when I was young…" Zoey laughed.

"Of course you did." She said, rolling her eyes and asking "Do you EVER run out of secrets to show me?" He chuckled rather darkly, saying with a mysterious undertone in his voice "I've always had secrets, Zoey. I just chose now to show you one of them."

She stopped to think on his words as he looked at her, and she could tell he smiled rather deviously. He only stood about a meter from her, and she resisted the urge to pull his mask down and see what his smiles looked like. "Come on, I want to show you what's down here." He said, taking her hand abruptly and leading her down the dark stairway, interrupting her thoughts.

She followed submissively, and when he snapped his fingers, glowstone in the walls of the room lit all at once, revealing the stone brick room beneath the small cabin. Of course, since this was Rythian's space, an entire wall was dedicated to book shelves, and another to one of his many desks, where a quill sat beside a bottle of ink, a book sitting in the center. The dust level down here was no different than up above, though it was definitely brighter down here. Zoey sneezed again, and Rythian sighed, summoning a ball of wind into his hand that sucked up all the dust, upstairs included.

He then set the ball of lint aflame, waiting calmly until it incinerated completely to look to Zoey, who sneezed again but thanked him. She didn't sneeze after that, and Rythian grabbed a book on one of his shelves that she didn't see the title of. It was an extremely thick book, and unknown to Zoey, it was a book on the history of Tekkitopia's Royal Family. Just as she was about to ask what the book was about, Daisy fluttered into the room and landed on the top of her head.

She giggled, and Rythian looked up from the back cover of the book to look at her. She smiled at the top of her head where she felt the butterfly perched, looking cross-eyed at it. He smiled, and suggested "Why don't we go back outside to the pond, so she won't feel so suffocated and can fly around easier?" Zoey refocused on him and smiled, agreeing and following him back up the secret spiral stairs.

When he moved the book/lever back to it's original position, she saw the glowstone flick off just before the stairway slid back into place, perfectly concealed in the stone floor. She then followed him outside, and when he flew over to the other side of the pond and sat under a willow tree, she understood he wanted to be left alone for awhile. He kept his eyes on her even as he read the book he had brought with him, still a bit rattled by the incident with the Enderman, and the now ongoing war. She sat directly opposite of him across the pond, pretending to watch Daisy flit about, though he caught her glancing worriedly at him a few times.

He pushed it to the back of his mind and flipped to the part of the book he wanted: the Royal Guardians that had served the kingdom since it's beginning. Over the course of the next half hour, he read about every Guardian there ever was for the Royal Family, starting with the first and ending with the one who had served before him. He didn't find what he'd hoped to, unfortunately. The entire reason he'd come here was for this book; and in this book he had hoped to find something in the history of the kingdom that would help him accept his mother's words.

A case where Guardian and Royalty had loved each other. He was ashamed of his feelings for Zoey. He knew what he felt was indefinitely forbidden, that it would get him exiled or worse. He had hoped to find some solace in a case like his that had turned out alright….

It was only his luck that he wouldn't. He sighed, putting his forehead in his palm and growling in frustration. Zoey watched him from her side of the pond, her dismay at his troubled state growing as he ran his hands through his hair and snapped the book shut in frustration, setting beside him in the grass. Cautiously, Zoey walked around the lake to him, making sure her footsteps were loud enough that she wouldn't startle him.

He watched her approach, and when he made no objections, she sat with him. She laid on the grass so that she interrupted his vision, and smiled into his wary eyes. "Hey Ryth!" She said cheerily, and he looked at her with a crooked smile under his mask and an amused glint in his eye.

"And what, exactly, are you doing?" Rythian asked, sitting up straight and letting his back rest against the willow tree he sat under. Zoey giggled and said "I got bored, okay? A butterfly can only entertain a person for so long."

Rythian laughed. "Most people aren't entertained by them at all, Zoey." At this she replied "Really? That's weird, I find them quite fun to watch!"

He rolled his eyes and she giggled again, followed by a calm silence. He yawned, resting his head against the tree and closing his eyes. At this Zoey giggled and said "Tired again, Rythian?" he scoffed, eyes still closed as he said "I've begun to think I'm an insomniac."

She giggled again and he cracked one eye open to look at her. "Aren't you just Miss Sunshine today?" He said, and she smiled, replying "How can't I be? My dad's coming to visit soon, and I've been really worried about him."

Rythian replied with an infamous "fair enough," causing Zoey to giggle again before saying "Speaking of worrying, what's wrong with you today? You're awful grouchy." She poked him in the stomach and he smiled despite himself. "Just thinking" he replied cooly, closing his eyes again.

Zoey sat up and positioned herself so that her head rested just below his shoulder, causing his eyes to snap open and a blush form under his mask. She looked up at him innocently, but he knew she was going to ask "Thinking about what?" He sighed, looking down at her and frowning for a second. "The war, and what we'll have to do to win it," he lied, making sure to keep from glancing away from her or rushing himself, so it seemed believable.

After a second of consideration she bought it, causing Rythian to lay his head against the tree and close his eyes again, partly in relief and partly because he was just tired. Then he felt his mask get tugged off his face, and his eyes snapped open again to look at a once again giggling Zoey. He scolded her, but a smile still slowly spread across his face, causing her to smile as well. She'd never seen his smile before, after all.

As Rythian went to put the mask back up, Zoey reached up and stopped him, saying "Oh Ryth, please leave it down! I like seeing you smile!" He momentarily froze at her hand on his, though he complied to her wishes and removed his hand from his mask, letting it fall to his neck. She smiled, thanking him with her usual enthusiasm and settling back into her former position in the crook of his arm.

The two of them dozed for an hour or two before the sun began to set, and Rythian pulled his mask back on and announced they had to go back to the estate. Zoey whined, but got up and went with him back to his cottage to return his book, Daisy the butterfly following lazily behind them. The two of them then flew back to the estate, neither in any real hurry. When they did come back, they went to the stables and visited with the horses for awhile before heading to Rythian's mess of a room.

He found a large jar with an open top for Zoey to keep Daisy in, and threw in a few flower buds for the butterfly to eat from. He set it on the balcony and lingered there for a moment before coming back inside to find Zoey staring at the necklace he had given her, fascinated by the orange and pink light it reflected off the setting sun. He smiled secretly at this, and sat beside her on his bed. She turned and smiled at him, and again he was aware of his heart skipping a beat.

Frustrated with himself, he looked away from her. 'You can't love Zoey, so just stop doing that!' He thought, hiding his own anger from her as best he could. Unfortunately, she was tipped off by his sudden movements and how his eyes never quite met hers since the day began.

Gently she rested her hand on his, making him jump. "Ryth?" She asked, concern evident in her demeanor "What's wrong? You've been acting funny."

Again she noticed he wouldn't quite meet her eyes when she talked to him, and her concern only grew. He had always looked her in the eye when they talked… And why was he acting so strange? He sighed, looking to the floor in front of him, hunching forward.

Then he surprised her, his eyes glinting with that look he got when he smiled all of a sudden, and he responded easily "Nothing's wrong, Zoey. I'm just tired, though that's not very unusual." Zoey wanted to believe him, badly, but somehow she knew he wasn't saying everything. He squeezed her hand gently and said "I'm fine, Zoey, really."

She felt her breath hitch for some reason, and as he released her hand and stood, she saw the same frustrated look in his eyes as before. She didn't bother him anymore about it, though. If he was sure he was fine, she didn't have any right to intrude…. Though it felt odd to her that she wasn't asking.

The two sat in silence for what felt like forever, Rythian now in his desk chair that he had turned to face her, Zoey still on his bed. Soon, she announced that she was going to bed, and the two shared a short and awkward "goodnight" and with that she went to her room. Once she was gone, Daisy with her, Rythian growled in frustration, kicking his chair back into it's original spot. He plopped onto his bed and let himself lay back, though his legs still hung over the edge of it.

He glared at the ceiling, still rather angry with himself. Why, of all people, did he have to be 'in love' -he felt people used the term too lightly- with Zoey? It could have been anyone, why her? "What's the use of loving someone" he grumbled "if there's no way they could love you back?"

He not only was angry with himself for that, but he had used magic to make her believe him earlier, when she'd asked if he was okay. He felt terrible about it, having to trick her like that…. But she couldn't know. She wouldn't be able to keep her mouth shut, and soon the entire kingdom would know.

That was, if she wasn't scared of him or something. He sighed, grumbling again "Why?" Sitting up, he removed his boots, cape, and mask before settling himself down to sleep. Buried under his covers, he glared at the wall and grumbled under his breath.

Just before he did manage sleep, he said "I'll just try not to love her. It'll go away eventually. It has to. If it doesn't, I can't just ignore it."

The problem with that was, trying only goes so far. Especially when you're trying not to love someone you've known since you were 11 and you see them and speak to them for most of every day. Rythian didn't know it yet, but trying not to love Zoey wouldn't work too well. Not by a long shot.


	9. Chapter 8

After Xephos' letter, the days went by with a quiet tension. Everyone waited for him to return, Lomadia more anxiously than the rest of them, as was understandable. Zoey wasn't as worried. She was more concerned with her Guardian.

Rythian had been growing progressively more nervous, fiddling with his rings, hair, amulets, and anything else he could find at all times. Soon he began to wander off on his own without telling anyone, only adding to the worry in the fortress. One time he had slipped out through his bedroom window in the middle of the night, which sent Cecilia into full panic mode, only to eventually find him at his cottage, writing calmly in his journal. Needless to say he got a full length lecture when she drug him back to the estate for that one.

After a week, King Xephos did indeed come to the fortress, and was openly alarmed to see his daughter without Rythian beside her. He immediately sought the young man out, at first intending to lecture him, but when he found him, saw very clearly he had reason to be alone. The wariness in his posture was enough of a hint without the pure exhaustion in his eyes and the atmosphere around him. The boy craved solitude, but the way his mother had been talking, he was beginning to worry those around him.

Even Lomadia, -who'd been constantly sending notes back and forth to her network of informants, trying to figure out what all was going on and help rule the kingdom- had noticed he'd been acting strange. Zoey, though….. As soon as the king, Honeydew, and Teep, -the other two being his "military escort"- had arrived, she had asked him to help her find Rythian. He agreed, and on the way she had explained all that had happened. From her point of view, anyway.

Now, she completely ignored his various signs of complaint and kneeled in front of him. "Rythian!" she scolded, "I've been looking for you everywhere!" He simply muttered an apology, and quickly glanced away from her to Xephos.

He nodded to the king, who nodded back, giving him a stern expression that said the two would talk later. After a moment, Zoey waved her hand in front of Rythian's face, noticing he had begun to stare off into space. He jumped, and she giggled at him, causing a small smile to appear on his lips. Though she couldn't see it, she knew it was there, and she was happy that he was starting to cheer up a little.

Xephos crept off to find Lomadia again, leaving the two alone sitting on the edge of the southeast wall, overlooking the plains leading to the castle they normally called home. It wasn't quite dusk, but it wasn't midday either, leaving the temperature pleasant, though maybe a little cool. As soon as she was sure her father was gone, Zoey pulled down Rythian's mask and giggled at the grumbling and slight frown she discovered. After a moment or two, she reached up and traced one of his scars, still rather mesmerized by them.

Rythian's head instinctively rested further into her hand before he could even think of stopping himself. She was making this so damn hard…. It was bad enough to control his emotions when she wasn't even around, but like this? He was putty in her hands.

She studied him now, watching him as he stared into the space behind her. She'd noticed he'd stopped looking her in the eye a few days ago, and it was really starting to bother her. He'd been acting so strangely lately…. It was beginning to seriously worry her.

"Have I upset him somehow?" She asked herself as she ran her thumb across his cheek, feeling the pressure on her hand increase a little as she did. "Has someone, or something else upset him? Why won't he just tell me about it?"

A thousand questions shot through her head, biting at her curiosity and conscience until she asked quietly "Rythian?" He refocused on reality and looked at some point on her face other than her eyes. More worry picked at her mind. He still wouldn't meet her eyes.

"What's wrong? You've been acting funny." Zoey said, still running her fingers lightly along his scarred lower jaw. He focused on her hair, she now realized, and was focused rather intently on it, being keen not to look near her eyes.

He was thinking, -and thinking hard- she could tell that much. Debating to himself what to tell her, if anything. It was typical for him to weigh every decision carefully, but right now it was just beginning to stress her. He reached out and took a piece of her hair and fiddled with it for a second, looking at it like his life depended on it.

After a while he let it go, watching it fall back to it's former position across her shoulder. He shook his head, his eyes flickering to hers for a fraction of a second. "I'll tell you later, Zoey." She sighed in disappointment, but agreed anyway.

After a moment or two Rythian's eyes slid closed and he leaned into her hand more. Only then did she realize she still held her hand to his face, still running her fingers lightly over the scars that covered it's lower half. She watched him open his eyes again and look to her, still careful not to meet her eyes. He studied her for a moment as she did him, and with reluctance reached up and removed her hand from his face, holding it in his own instead.

"Come on," He said, putting his mask back up and standing, thus pulling her up with him "Your dad and Tee probably want to see you for awhile longer." Zoey nodded enthusiastically, glad both that she could see Tee and that Rythian was doing something other than moping around. The two set off, Rythian holding rather desperately to Zoey's hand and leading the way. He was beginning to realize time away from her only made him need her company more.

He really didn't want to let her go. And it frustrated him, but he didn't dare show it. It would only make her more worried about him, which would make her ask questions. He wasn't sure he could handle questions right now, since he was still trying to answer his own.

He resisted the urge to rub his head. So many questions…. He didn't dare go over them with someone -especially Zoey- around. Something about him would tip her off and she would ask more questions, being the inquisitive person she was.

By the time they reached the doors to the main lounge where everyone sat, Zoey was leading Rythian along, instead of how it had started. Without hesitation she walked right in the doors, now babbling excitedly as she dragged Rythian along behind her. Anyone who was really looking, though, could have seen he held as tightly to her hand as she did his, and would notice a slight reluctance when he let her go to talk to Tee. He went over to Honeydew and his mother, who were discussing, of all things, Rythian's dad.

He had been one of the dwarf's assistant generals, and Rythian had found he loved to brag of all the things he had taught him. As he walked up, though, he heard Honeydew say "Oh dear…. I'd never really heard the story that way…" Rythian knew they were discussing his father's death.

The day he still had nightmares about.

He shook himself free of any melancholy, and greeted the dwarf as if he hadn't heard what he had. Thankfully, this changed the subject just in time. When Rythian glanced at his mother, she looked on the verge of tears. He could tell she was grateful to him for saving her from that. Especially in front of one of her late husband's old friends.

The three carried on a decent conversation for awhile, until Rythian asked about the war with Prince Lalna. After this, Cecilia left the conversation to talk with Zoey, something she rarely did. For some reason, this made Rythian uneasy.

He knew his mom wouldn't say anything too personal in front of everyone…. But he worried what she might tell her if they were alone at some point. He shook his worry away and returned back to his war-talk with Honeydew, wanting to know what Lalna's next possible move could be and how Xephos and his army would respond. Despite his situation with Zoey, he wanted badly to be on the battlefield when the armies fought next, though he didn't voice this to the general, knowing it would worry Zoey and his mother too much.

Apparently, his behavior as of late was worrying enough. Him going off to war at the moment wouldn't be… Ideal, to say the least. Eventually, Zoey came over to Rythian and dragged he and Tee out of the room, bored by the "adult talk" of the others.

"Zoey, is it really necessary to drag us both out here?" He asked when they arrived at the gardens Rythian had showed her her first night here. Giggling slightly, she nodded, saying "Yes! Tee hasn't seen the garden yet, and besides, Daisy's right up there!"

She pointed to the balcony next to Rythian's, which was her own. There, on a small glass table, sat the butterfly in it's new home, sucking the nectar from a blue flower. Zoey had told Tee all about Daisy, and anything else she found vaguely important that had happened over the last few days. She left anything about Rythian out for later, though.

She knew he would run off again, and maybe then she could talk to Tee about his strange behavior. But for now, she simply looked at her guardian expectantly. He sighed, and gave her her flying ring. She smiled at him, and their hands brushed for a second or two, causing Rythian to freeze for a second before shoving his hands in his pockets and blushing beneath his mask.

She flew up and brought the jar containing the butterfly down to show Tee, who smiled and acted like he was extremely interested. He only went along because it was Zoey, but when she asked him to pick a flower for the butterfly to eat next, he complied. Rythian stood in the shadow of the large doors from which they had come, watching the two of them. He let out a long sigh, closing his eyes and leaning against the cold wall.

He'd been getting even less sleep than usual, his mind not wanting to shut down enough to let him get more than an hour or two of sleep each night. Needless to say, it was beginning to wear on him. If he wasn't thinking about Zoey, he was thinking about sleep. A few of the times he'd "snuck off" he'd ended up taking naps either under a tree near his cottage, or in the structure itself.

After a few moments, he felt a familiar sensation shoot through him as Zoey poked his arm. "Rythiaaan!" She whined once his eyes were open. "What?"

She looked up at him, noticing the tiredness in the eyes that still wouldn't meet hers. "Tee's gone off to find his horse, and I'm bored!" Zoey said, purposely hanging on his right arm and looking up at him with only her eyes. She mostly did this to see his reaction, but it was a true statement, nevertheless.

Night was now almost upon them, and slowly the glowstone lanterns around the garden began to glow brighter against the decreasing light. "What am I supposed to do about it, exactly?" He asked, glancing from the flowerbed to her right, the top of her head, and the floor. She shrugged, saying as nonchalantly as she could "I don't know, you could, possibly, tell me what's been making you act weird around me."

At this he sighed slightly, focusing on the ground somewhere to his right. Zoey watched him, seeing the torn expression on his face as he argued with himself. "Tell her" said one side if him "no, it'll ruin everything" said the other side. He put his head in his hand and rubbed his temples, a headache forming in the back of his head.

"Zoey," He said quietly, closing his eyes and sighing as he said "It's…. Complicated. Very complicated. Hell, I don't even know if I understand it!" He found himself raising his voice, and breathed deeply.

"I just…. Let me figure it out first, then I'll tell you everything, okay?" Rythian asked, meeting her eyes for the first time in a long while. The look inside his were just so confused, so unsure that he didn't even look like himself.

Zoey simply nodded, wrapping her arms tighter around his right arm, intertwining their fingers. She smiled slightly, saying happily "Okay Ryth! I'll be there for you like you're always there for me; this time it's my turn to return the favor!" She then beamed up at him.

This only caused his already pounding heart to beat faster, and he had to try his hardest not to look her in the eyes. She let go of his arm but not his hand, flying up slightly and tugging him along behind her. She took him back to her balcony, where Daisy sat once again, eating from a new white flower that Tee had picked.

Rythian landed behind Zoey, getting the feeling again that someone was watching them. He didn't know for sure, though. He was too busy trying to control his emotions to really focus. Zoey watched him from the corner of her eye as she led him into her room, sitting on the bed and pulling him down beside her.

Rythian noticed she still held tightly to his hand, even after they had sat there for awhile. He didn't complain, though. He was actually rather grateful that she was helping to keep him grounded. Otherwise he was likely to fly off and hide again in the woods or something.

He leaned against the wall beside the bed and closed his eyes, relaxing the stress of the past week. As usual, though, his mind raced at full speed, and he was fully aware of Zoey pulling his mask back down again a few moments later. His eyes snapped open to see her smiling at him, giggling slightly as usual.

He watched her when she reached up and touched his cheek again, tracing a scar that cut diagonally from his cheekbone to just above his lips. He resisted the urge to pull her closer to him, and she moved on to other scars. She had traced every one before she came upon the one that almost perfectly traced his jawline. This one she traced a few times before just resting her palm on his face and making circles around his cheekbone with her thumb.

His eyes slid closed and he leaned against her hand, her touch becoming more and more of a necessity by the second. She smiled at this, and scooted back so that she could rest her head on his shoulder. She snuggled into him further and one of his eyes opened to look down at her. He smiled slightly, and Zoey was elated to see his small smirk.

Seeing his smiles always made her unreasonably happy, though she could never quite figure out why. Maybe it was just the fact that she was one of the only ones who knew what they looked like. Maybe it was because she so rarely got to see him smile. Whatever the reason, she enjoyed them.

Soon his eyes slid closed again, and Zoey closed hers as well, beginning to realize just how tired she was. Suddenly, Rythian spoke. "Zoey?" He asked, and she shifted to look at him.

"You can keep your flying ring with you. As long as you don't abuse the power of it, you can keep it." He said, keeping his eyes fixed on the hand the ring rested on, which lay on her lap. She smiled the happiest smile she had all week.

He spared a quick glance at it, and in response he felt his own smile appear. "Thank you Ryth!" She said cheerily, and she threw her arms around his neck, catching him quite off guard. His breath caught in his throat, and he heard Zoey giggling in his ear.

His heart was beating so fast and so loud he thought she could hear it, and for a second he just sat there. It didn't take long, though, before he returned her hug, as shaky ad nervous as it may have been. She giggled more at this, and said quietly in his ear "Oh relax, will you? It's just me!"

"That's the problem." He muttered, though it was quiet enough that Zoey couldn't hear him. "What?" She asked, pulling back from him so that she could see his face.

He shook his head, his eyes fixing on her nose as he said "Nothing, Zoey." She studied him again, and he looked away from her to the balcony doors. The feeling of an observer was growing, and he would do anything to distance himself from Zoey at the moment. Now he was sure someone was watching them, and he gently pushed Zoey off him to get up and investigate.

"Ryth? What is it? Where are you going?" She asked, following uncertainly behind him as he wandered to the doors.

He stepped onto the balcony and held his hand behind him, signaling for Zoey to stay put. She obeyed silently, and he flew a little ways up, trying to see everything he could. As he looked around, he spotted, of all things, an Enderman. He watched it as it watched him, being very careful not to look away and not blink.

He teleported quickly behind it, katar out and ready. He quickly killed the ebony monster, and teleported back to Zoey, who now stood on the balcony waiting for him. He sheathed his sword, and she said "Instincts again?" He smiled a little and nodded.

It was only when Zoey smiled again that he realized he was in the open and his mask was down. In one fluid movement he pulled it back up, glancing around nervously and making sure no one had seen him. Zoey, of course, laughed at him, and said playfully "Afraid someone will see you, Mr. Mysterious?" He rolled his eyes, but she knew she was right.

Rythian looked around, and noticed the position of the moon in the sky. "It's getting pretty late, Zoey. Your dad wanted to see me, so I think I should get going…." He trailed off uncertainly, glancing at her and hoping vainly she would leave it at that.

"Can I come?" She -predictably- asked, perking up slightly at the thought of going somewhere. He sighed. "From what I understand he wants me to be alone, Zoey."

She frowned. "Oh, okay." She said, playing up her disappointment to get him to let her come. "I guess I'll have to find something else to do, then."

He chuckled a little, saying with a teasing tone to his voice "No, Zoey, you're not guilt tripping me into letting you come." She sighed, though she smiled as she whined "Fine. Go talk to my dad. But you have to promise to come back here after you're done!"

He smiled beneath his mask, replying infamously "Fair enough, I suppose." She smiled at him and sent him on his way, waiting until he turned the corner of the hall to duck back into her room and shut the door. She walked to her bed and sat on it, sitting with her back to the wall like Rythian had earlier. She sighed and closed her eyes, whispering to herself "What the heck is going on with him?"

She opened her eyes again and stared at the wall opposite her, thinking aloud as she said "It has something to do with me, that much is obvious… But what did I do? Did I anger him somehow? He's seemed pretty frustrated all week."

She shook her head and sighed again. "I'll never figure him out. I swear if I do it'll be a miracle." With that she got up and went out on the balcony, seeking entertainment from Daisy.

Meanwhile, Rythian was entering the lounge everyone had been in earlier to find Xephos by himself, sitting on one of the couches looking over what looked like a letter. He heard the knight's entrance, and looked up and smiled, saying light-heartedly "Rythian! Sit down, will you? I need to speak with you for a minute."

Rythian did as he was asked, sitting in a black armchair opposite the king. He set the letter upside down on the table and said seriously "Alright, what's going on? All I've heard about all day is that you're acting strangely and worrying everyone to death. My daughter's been the most adamant about it."

Rythian held Xephos' gaze, and he continued speaking. "Something's bothering you, and if you won't tell anyone else, tell Zoey. She's worried sick about you, you know." Rythian nodded.

"I'm aware, sir." He said, and Xephos rolled his eyes. "How many times have I told you to just call me by my name, Rythian? No one's around, and it's not like I'M going to yell at you for it."

He sighed. "Sorry, Xephos, I've just got a lot on my mind right now…" The king scoffed. "Tell me about it."

At this Rythian smiled slightly, and so did he. "I'm serious, though. If something's bothering you, tell Zoey. Especially if it involves her, -which I get the feeling it does." He said, returning back to the original topic of conversation.

Rythian rubbed his forehead and nodded, knowing he was right. Xephos smiled at him again and told him he could go, returning to the letter he'd been reading earlier. He thanked him and left, delaying himself a little bit so he could try and come up with what exactly he was going to tell Zoey. Obviously, he wasn't just going to waltz on in there and say something stupid like "oh by the way, I'm kind of in love with you, if that's cool."

He wandered around for about five minutes before finally deciding just to go see her. Who knew, maybe she would just distract him the whole time. Maybe he wouldn't have time to tell her. He severely hoped that would be the case; he was beginning to get very nervous.

He reached her door after what seemed like too little time. His palms were already sweating, and he walked in to find her curled up on her bed, red hair and blue skirts spread out perfectly behind her, watching Daisy as she walked on her finger. He smiled at her, and she looked up at him and smiled, getting up and putting Daisy back into her little home. She sat back down and patted the spot beside her on the bed.

Rythian walked over to her, his nervousness returning as quickly as it had vanished as he came closer to her. He sat on his hands to keep himself from fiddling with his hair or rings, and just as he was beginning to articulate something to say, she wrapped her arms around his right arm and rested her head on his shoulder. The contact sent an electric-like current through his body, and completely stopped any train of thought he might've had. He looked down at her, and she looked up at him, studying his face again.

"You're nervous, aren't you?" She asked soberly. Rythian nodded a little. "How'd you know?"

She smiled a little. "Because you're shaking, and because you're sitting on your hands." Rythian hadn't even realized he was shaking, but, true to Zoey's word, his right arm shook with a slight tremor. He took his hands out from under himself, setting them on his lap instead, though he subconsciously twisted his rings on his fingers.

Zoey watched him, a small frown playing on her lips. "Rythian please tell me what's wrong. Something's bothering you, and I want to know what's going on!" She said, concern evident in her voice.

Rythian's words stuck in his throat, so Zoey kept going. "And don't even try and tell me it doesn't have to do with me, because I know it does!" She said, her frustration growing as he stayed silent. He opened his mouth to speak, but his tongue wouldn't form words, and she continued.

"You've been avoiding my eyes, and you've been running off, and you're worrying me to pieces!" She now shouted, standing up and pacing the room in an irritated manner. Rythian finally found his words, and said gently "Zoey, listen to me. I know I've been weird, and I know I've worried you, and I'm sorry for that, but-" she cut him off.

"But what? You're sorry? You didn't realize what you've been doing to me?" Zoey demanded, her emotions getting the better of her.

Even Rythian was beginning to get frustrated, not just with her but with himself. She watched him for a second or two more before continuing again. "Why won't you just tell me what's going on?! I'm so sick of-" This time Rythian cut her off, his own frustration causing him to stand suddenly.

"Okay, that's it!" He said, running his hands through his hair as he actually shouted at her. "I'm just going to say it!" Zoey was confused, and began to speak "Say wha-" but was cut off by Rythian again.

He sighed heavily, looked her in the eyes, and said "Zoeya, I'm in love with you." The princess stood there, silent and still. She was in shock, after all. For Rythian to come out with something like this…

Not to mention what her father would do if he found out. But then again, being in love was different than being lovers…. The latter was a bit more physical. Zoey's head spun with all these thoughts and more, and Rythian stood there and watched her, his heart breaking with every second.

She didn't love him…. Why was he stupid enough to think she would live him?! He turned away from her, saying coldly "I'm sorry. This never happened."

With that, he began to leave the room, though Zoey called after him. "Rythian! Ryth, please! Hang on a second!"

But he was beyond listening, and was gone before she could make herself move. She stood there, staring at the door. She didn't know for how long, but eventually she just climbed into her bed and stared at the wall. Rythian was in love with her, and she'd just let him think she didn't care.

Rythian, in the mean time, was storming through the fortress, angrier than he'd felt in a while. Why did he think she would love him? He reached the front gates, not even bothering with flying over them, teleporting to the other side instead. He didn't even care where he was flying, he just needed to go hit something.

He soon found himself near his cabin, in a patch of woods not far from it. He stopped himself, and stood there for a moment, just letting all his anger work it's way to his muscles before he turned without warning and punched the tree nearest him, letting out a frustrated scream. A large dent formed where his fist hit, and he continued until he knocked the tree down. By the time he was done with his rage fit, 6 trees had fallen in pieces to the forest floor.

He stood there, panting and shaking, his knuckles bleeding and with splinters stuck inside them, thinking to himself "Why did I think she would love me?" His anger soon turned to a sort of numbness, and he walked to his cabin's clearing. He sat down by the pond and sighed, holding his head in his hand. He thought aloud now, talking to his reflection in the water.

"Maybe it's better that she doesn't love me. It's forbidden anyways… I'm not royalty." He said sadly, twisting his rings in thought.

He sat there for a long time before he thought he heard someone call his name. He shook it off and went back to his thinking, but when he heard it again, he recognized the voice. "Rythian, help! Skeleton chasing me!"

"Zoey!" He shouted, and she came flying into the clearing, a skeletal archer following not far behind her. He shot a fireball at the monster, and watched it shoot in random directions as it died. Only when it dissolved into white ash did he turn to the panting princess.

"Zoey what the hell are you doing out here without a weapon?!" Rythian demanded, and she shied back a bit, saying quietly "I came to find you…" He face-palmed, and scolded her quietly, saying "Zoeya…" Then she noticed the cuts and bruises on his hands.

"What did you do?!" She demanded, walking up to him and examining his hands. Dammit, he'd forgotten his lifestone, hadn't he? He winced as she grabbed his hands, but his tone was calm and even as he said "It's nothing, Zoey."

She kept her eyes on his swollen -and most likely broken- knuckles, and began picking the splinters out of his hands. "Nothing? What did you do, punch down an entire forest?" She scolded, and he replied with the same numbness he'd been talking to himself with when he said "Not the entire forest, just a few trees."

Zoey looked up at him incredulously. "What?! Rythian!" He looked at her, his eyes cold as he said "Why should you care?"

She sighed and said gently "Rythian, please don't be mad at me. I do care, I care a lot!" He pulled his hands away from her. "But not enough to love me?"

She looked at him, unsure of what to say or how she felt. "I knew it…" Rythian said, turning away from her and saying "We need to get back, before people know we're gone." He walked into the woods, and Zoey ran after him, desperate to make things right.

She walked beside him, and tried several times to get him to look at her. Finally she got fed up enough that she just stood in his way, and when he tried to step around her, she blocked him. He looked down at her, his arms crossed and his eyes cold, and Zoey was actually frightened, but she stood her ground. He wouldn't hurt her, even if he was mad at her.

"Zoey, please move so we can get back." He said, and she shook her head. "No. Not until you listen to me."

He sighed, saying tiredly "Zoey we really don't have time for thi-" He was cut off by Zoey reaching up and yanking his mask down. This caused him to freeze up, unsure what she was going to do. She uncrossed his arms, and much to Rythian's frustration, the electric sensation shot through him again. She stepped into them and wrapped them around her, resting her head on his chest as he stood there, frozen.

He stared at where she once stood, repeating to himself over and over again what he'd been thinking about a few minutes before. Zoey was making that very difficult. Just her being that close to him was hard enough to deal with, but soon enough she reached up and started tracing his scars again. He clenched his jaw.

She knew what this did to him… He kept his eyes on the ground behind her, knowing what she was trying to accomplish and not intending to let her do it. His entire body buzzed with the electric sensation she gave him, the majority of it causing a tightness in his chest. His resolve was breaking down, his jaw slowly loosening and posture relaxing.

Zoey watched him, hoping with all her might that he would just look at her. Listen to her and understand that she didn't want him to be mad at her, that she hated it when he was mad at her. He had hurt himself because of it, and she wouldn't let that happen again.

Suddenly he seemed to realize what he was doing, and he pulled away from her, pulling his mask back up and walking around her, knowing she would follow him. She stood there for a moment or two, kind of hurt that he'd broken away from her like that. She followed him, though, and they walked the rest of the way to the estate in silence. Rythian kept his eyes to the ground, and Zoey watched him, rather distressed.

She looked at his hands again, seeing they were so swollen his rings looked like they might have been cutting him. She sighed quietly and looked to the ground herself. This was going to take a while for him to get over. She only hoped she would get him back to being himself again…. Somehow.


	10. Chapter 9

Rythian didn't come out of his rooms for a week after he had told Zoey he loved her. He wouldn't eat, insisting his lifestone would sustain him just fine, which worried his mother to the point that she dragged a chair into the hall across from his door so she could talk to him. No one knew what was wrong with him. No one but Princess Zoeya.

She hadn't exactly been herself either, but she still acted as she normally would, trying to hide her problems. She felt that they were insignificant compared to other people's. When she was alone in her room, she would go out onto the balcony and stare at Rythian's door, trying to see inside, though she knew she wouldn't. He kept it pitch black in there precisely for that purpose.

When he finally did come out, it was to see King Xephos, General Honeydew, and Teep off back to the castle. He was only out for a short time, saying goodbye to the three of them and checking on his horse before retreating back to the darkness of his room. Zoey had tried to talk to him when she found him in the stables, but he ignored her. She wanted so bad for him not to be mad at her, but the more she tried to apologize or just plain talk to him, the more he seemed to get worse.

A few more days passed, and still Rythian remained in his rooms, refusing to come out for anyone. By the end of the second week, Zoey was fed up enough that she just flew over to his balcony and stood there, staring into the darkness and crossing her arms. "Rythian, I know you're in there!" She said, and she could've sworn she saw a movement in the darkness.

"Will you PLEASE just come out here and talk to me?" She asked, self-consciously fiddling with the long sleeves of her purple dress. She stood there for a minute. No response.

"Rythiaan!" She whined, walking up to the doors and peering inside, faintly seeing his outline sitting in the farthest and darkest corner. His purple eyes glowed slightly, providing just enough light for him to write in what looked like his journal. He finished writing and ripped the piece of paper out, teleporting it to the balcony just behind Zoey with a slight "vwoop" sound.

She walked over and picked it up, seeing it said "Go away, Zoey." She frowned, and marched right back up to the doors again. "No, I will not go away." She said, watching as he got up and walked to the doors.

He was skinnier than he had been, she noticed as he leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed and eyes cold. "You haven't even been using the lifestone, have you?" She said sadly, realizing now how foolish she'd been to think he was. He didn't reply.

"Rythian, why won't you just talk to me? Please?" She asked, and he complied and said "Go away, Zoey." With that, he turned back around and walked back into the darkness of his room.

"That's not what I meant!" She called after him, distressed. He ignored her, and sat back down in the corner, snapping his fingers. She saw the shadows wrap slowly around him, encasing him like a cocoon, and soon enough, he was invisible.

She pleaded with him for half the day, knowing he still sat there. When it began to get dark, she left, only to return not long after with food and water. She sat down, looking into the darkness. Crossing her arms, she said defiantly "Rythian Hellstrand, I'm not moving from this spot until you come out here and talk to me!"

Rythian scoffed from his corner, though she didn't hear it. She wouldn't sit out there forever. It would start raining, or she'd get cold, or she wouldn't be able to sleep. Then she would leave.

But she stayed true to her word. She sat out there for hours, staring where she knew he sat. By midnight, she was curled up in the center of the balcony, fast asleep. Rythian shook his head. She could get comfortable anywhere.

He got up, walked to the doors, and watched her silently. She was crazy to do this. It was almost winter, for crying out loud! He could see her shivering from over here!

He tried telling himself to just forget about it. It was her decision to be a fool and sit out there on the cold. But, soon enough, he found himself gathering up the pillows and blankets from his own bed and stepping silently onto the balcony. He didn't care how mad he was she didn't love him, he still loved her, and he would not just sit there while she froze to death.

Careful not to wake her, he laid the blankets out on the floor, put the pillows down, and picked her up. He set her down on top of one of the blankets, then tucked the other one around her. He sat beside her and waited until she stopped shivering to even think of getting up. When he did, he lingered by the doors before walking in.

Even then, he watched her from behind the glass. He saw her stir, and ducked further into the shadows. She sat up, rubbing her eyes. She looked at the blankets and the pillows, and smiled slightly.

"These are his…." She said, and looked to where he'd been standing only a second before, the small smile still present on her face. She laid back down, and pulled the covers up over her nose, watching the doorway until she fell back asleep. Rythian crawled onto his own bed, and spent the entire night shivering, but he didn't care.

He could handle being cold, just like he could handle not eating. Maybe he was abusing himself, -he had been using the lifestone up until a few days ago- but he just didn't feel like anyone would care if he didn't eat. Zoey didn't, why would anyone else? He looked at her again, asleep on the balcony.

Maybe he was wrong, though. She wasn't sleeping on his balcony because she felt like it would be fun. She did it because she wanted him to come out of his room. She was worried about him.

She hadn't smiled when she'd realized the blankets were his because they had something funny written on them. It was because she knew that he'd put them around her. Rythian turned on his back and looked at the ceiling. He felt so foolish now.

She cared about him, and he knew she did all along. She just wasn't sure about herself. Hell, he wouldn't have known he was in love with her if his mother hadn't told him. It would have probably taken him years to figure out.

He had given her less than 15 seconds. That wasn't fair to her. Nor was it fair for him to be so cruel to her for not figuring herself out. He looked at her again.

He just needed to give her time to think about it, and right now all she was thinking about was getting him to come out of his room. He needed to act normal again, so she'd stop worrying about him and think about herself for awhile. Of course, he couldn't just go back to the way things were before Lalna had attacked the castle and they'd come here. Before he'd found out he loved her.

He couldn't act like being near her didn't make his heart pound. He couldn't pretend that he didn't enjoy it when she held his hand as she led him around. Rythian reached up and pulled his mask down, his own hand resting on his scarred face for a moment. He couldn't tell himself he didn't wish she touched his scars more often.

He loved Zoeya, and he couldn't just pretend that he didn't. But he did need to stop punishing her for not understanding her feelings. He turned on his other side and faced the wall, staring at it for a moment as he made up his mind. In the morning, he would get out of here and be with Zoey for the rest of the day.

He would try to control his emotions, and hope for the best. And if it turned out she did love him, then great, all the better for him! And if not, he would just have to live with it. That was just the way it was going to have to be.

He fell asleep not long after this contemplation. Though he woke multiple times in the night from being cold, or from nightmares about his father, he woke the next morning feeling ready.

Zoey woke up before him, and when he woke up, she was munching on an apple she'd brought from the kitchens the night before. He watched her from the doorway, and she watched him from her spot on the balcony. She sat on top of the blankets he'd given her during the night, making sure she left room on the blankets beside her for another person. When she finished her apple, she set the core aside, and said "Thanks for the blankets, Ryth, but are you going to just stand there or are you going to come over here and talk to me?"

He watched her for a moment, doubt causing him to hesitate. She smiled at him and asked him again, seeing something had changed while she was asleep. His eyes weren't cold, and he wasn't hiding in the dark anymore. He gave in after a few more minutes of thought, and Zoey beamed at him when he turned the handle to the door and walked out.

He felt his pulse quicken as he sat next to her, and he said "Well, you win. I'm out. Now what?" The smile faded a bit from her face, her joviality giving way to sincerity.

"I'm sorry I made you mad, Rythian." She said, glancing at the floor in front of her. "It's okay," he said "I shouldn't have put you on the spot like that and then held your lack of an answer against you. That was unfair to the both of us."

She looked up at him and smiled a bit, her mood turning happy again. "I'm glad you're not mad anymore! You want some food?" Rythian smiled and took the sandwich she offered him, saying lightheartedly "Of course I want food, Zoey, I'm starving here!"

He ate the sandwich and thanked her for it, which caused another wide smile to appear on her face. The two talked and joked for a long time, and when Cecilia came to see if Rythian had come out of his room, she was very pleased to find he and the princess laughing on the balcony. Neither of them noticed her, and she smiled when she saw Zoeya tug his mask down just to see his face when she did. She laughed as he scolded her, hastily pulling it back up to hide the blush forming on his cheeks.

Shaking her head, Cecilia went off to find Lomadia, who had wanted to know if Rythian was finally out of his room nearly as bad as she did. She would be happy to know what she had just seen, to be sure.

Meanwhile, Zoey was still giggling at Rythian's reaction to his mask being pulled off. "Why are you so funny when you're flustered?" She asked, half thoughtfully and half jokingly. Rythian retorted with "Why do you ask so many questions?"

Zoey laughed again, saying simply "Questions help me understand you better. You're really hard to figure out sometimes!" Rythian chuckled, smiling slyly beneath his mask. "Maybe that's the way I like it!"

She considered him for a second before laughing again. "You can't expect me to take you seriously, can you?" She asked, and he chuckled. "No, I suppose I can't."

They were silent for a second or two, Rythian staring off into the distance while Zoey watched him. Suddenly he felt her wrap her arms around his arm and lay her head on his shoulder. This caused a variety of reactions, the tingly sensation shooting through his veins and the quickening of his pulse were only 2 of them, but they were the most notable. He looked at her, rather startled.

She was now the one staring into space, and he now watched her. "I missed you, Rythian, when you locked yourself in there." She said, gesturing to his room with a nod of her head. She looked up at him.

"Don't do that again, okay? You drove everyone insane!" She continued, making a slight joke at the end. He smiled a little, assuring her he wouldn't.

They just looked at each other for a moment, and then Zoey released his arm, grabbing his hand instead. "Come on, let's go find something else to eat! I'm hungry!" She said rather excitedly, standing and tugging him along behind her.

Rythian rolled his eyes, chuckling as he was lead down to the dining hall. She just wanted to drag him down to have dinner with everyone again. It was something she liked to do, like saying "Look everyone! I got Rythian out of his room!"

When they got there, Lomadia and Cecilia were sitting opposite each other, probably discussing the war. Another battle had happened while Rythian had hidden himself away. One on Lalna's turf that Xephos had won. It was a key victory, and the king's army intended to use the territory to their advantage, but the question was how.

As soon as Zoeya came in, however, the discussion stopped; no one liked to talk about the war -or really anything negative- in front of her. "Rythian!" His mother exclaimed, acting as if she hadn't seen what she had earlier. Lomadia followed suit, saying rather teasingly "Glad to see you're out of your room for once."

Zoey released him and sat beside her mother, and he sat beside his, replying cooly "I just needed to think about something for a while." She smiled. "Glad to see you've figured it out." Cecilia smiled as well, though she changed the subject.

"There's a surprise for you in the kitchen, Rythian, if you'd like to go look." She said, which caused him to raise his eyebrows at her. "A surprise, huh? Well, I guess I'll just have to go look, then."

He got up and went into the kitchen, hearing a strangely familiar voice say rather loudly "God damn fish is overcooked! Again!" He followed the sound around a corner to see the source of the noise. "Ravs!"

The young man turned and spotted the mage. "Rythian!" The two laughed and greeted each other properly before Rythian asked "What are you doing here? I haven't seen you for ages!"

"Well, apparently your old chef quit, so I'm the cook here now!" He said proudly, then whispered "You want some Scotch?" He produced a mug from inside a cabinet and poured some in, offering it to him. Rythian laughed and took the drink, thanking him and taking a swig.

It'd been a while since he'd had alcohol, and it hit him harder than he thought it would. "Holy crap!" He said, and Ravs laughed. "Too much for ya?"

He shook his head, balancing himself on the nearby counter and laughing. "No, no! I'm just not used to this much kick!" Once balanced again, he asked "This isn't watered down at all is it?"

Ravs shook his head. "Hell no!" Rythian rolled his eyes. "You always did enjoy the extreme end of things."

The two of them talked for awhile, mostly about what the other had been up to. Ravs' dad had been the cook here when the two of them were kids, but soon quit because he'd wanted to start his own tavern out in the country. According to Ravs, it was still up and running, but he just didn't feel like that was where he belonged, so he left.

Rythian told him of his time in the royal castle, and answered all his questions about life there. Ravs had never been there, and, like most people, wanted to know what it was like. Rythian was patient, and explained and described everything as best he could.

Eventually, Rythian had to return to the dinner table so that Ravs could finish cooking, and he left. When he came back in, his mother smiled at him knowingly. "What was that all about?" Zoey asked, and he explained who Ravs was and why he was here.

She and her mother listened intently, and Zoey giggled when he finished. When he asked why, she replied simply "He wears a kilt everywhere!" At this, Rythian rolled his eyes. "It's just part of his culture."

She smiled at him. "I know, I shouldn't be laughing…. But it's still a little funny!" She said, and Rythian smiled a little despite his respect for his friend.

When the food was served and everyone ate, Zoey dragged him off again, and he bid a hurried goodnight to everyone before she pulled him out of the room. She held his hand as she had before, though this time she led him off to the stables to visit the horses. When he questioned her about it, she admitted her intentions. "I may want to go riding before it gets dark…."

When they reached the wooden building and went in, Ghost and Willow both jerked their heads toasted the doors. Rythian sighed. It must have been awful for them to be cooped up all this time… "Alright, we'll go out for a quick ride."

Zoey gave a triumphant squeak of excitement, and grabbed the horses' bridles and reins. After quickly putting on this and their saddles, they walked the horses out of the barn, then rode out the front gates towards the nearby patch of forest. The two horses eagerly broke into a gallop, Ghost trailing slightly behind Willow, as was normal. Zoey giggled and urged her horse to go faster, the adrenaline rush making her rather loopy.

Willow complied and sped up, Ghost following not far back. A smile was slowly breaking out across Rythian's face, hidden beneath his mask, and soon enough he sped Ghost up, passing Willow with ease. This, of course, caused a race between them, Zoey starting it by shouting "Last one to your cottage is a rotten egg!" and passing Rythian again.

He laughed, and thus the race began. Both horses were eager and very willing to run, but the results were very much the same as any other race they had ever done. Rythian lagged behind Zoey for awhile, and right before she won, passed her with ease. He and Ghost shot through the trees and into the clearing first, Zoey and Willow following not far behind.

"Why do I even start these races if you're just going to beat me every time?" She asked, and her guardian laughed, shrugging and sliding off his horse's back as he said "Maybe the fun's in the race itself, not the winning?" She thought on this as she slid off her own horse, leading her over beside Ghost. "Maybe," she agreed after a minute.

Rythian smiled at her, and she tugged his mask down without warning, just to catch a glimpse of it. She succeeded, and giggled as he turned away from her and fixed the mask, complaining "Why do you insist on doing that? At least wait until we get indoors, for crying out loud!" Zoey blushed slightly, looking at her feet, admitting "I just like it when you smile…"

He looked at her for a second, rather amused at her sudden shyness. He chuckled, shaking his head. "Come on, I need to find another book to read." Zoey rolled her eyes, responding "What about that huge library back at the fortress?"

Rythian waved his hand dismissively. "I read all those a long time ago." Zoey rolled her eyes, asking sarcastically "Of course you have, why would I think otherwise?" He simply laughed it off, opening the door and walking into his cabin, she following not far behind.

He illuminated the torches, and quickly located the secret lever that opened the door to the basement. The staircase was revealed once again, and the two of them set off down it, Rythian flicking the switch that turned on the glowstone in the walls. He went over to the bookshelves almost immediately, while Zoey looked around again. She noticed things she hadn't before, like rough sketches of magical items -and a few ordinary things- stuck to the wall above the desk, and quite a few open books laying about in corners.

She heard him mumbling "Read it," over and over as he looked for a book he hadn't read on the shelves lining the stone walls. How he hadn't read every one of them surprised her, but after a few more moments he exclaimed "Found it!" She walked over as he wiped the dust off the cover of an old leather-bound book, and she could tell he was smiling widely. She rolled her eyes.

"I'm surprised you haven't read every book in existence by now! How many have you read, anyways?" She said, and he chuckled slightly. "Well, I finished the library at the fortress, this is the only one I haven't read out of these, and I'm halfway through the castle library." He replied rather matter-of-factly, which caused Zoey to gape at his apparent interest in reading.

"Jeesh! When do you read all this stuff, in your sleep?" She asked, and Rythian admitted "I read at night, when I'm SUPPOSED to be sleeping." She rolled her eyes, saying incredulously "No wonder you're tired all the time!"

He laughed nervously, and started up the stairs again. "Come on, it's getting pretty close to dusk now. We'd better get going." He said, and Zoey rolled her eyes, but followed him anyways.

He shut the stairway behind her, and he reached for the door handle before Zoey said "Hey Ryth?" He stopped and turned to her, and she asked "Can we stay here for just a little while longer? Please?"

He gave her a questioning look, but agreed anyway. Might as well humor her. It wasn't really THAT close to dark yet…. He lit the fireplace with his Ring of Ignition, and the two of them sat at opposite ends of the couch.

Zoey almost immediately reached over and tugged his mask down, sounding rather bossy as she ordered "Keep it down!" He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, but she knew he listened to her. "Fine, but only until we leave. I'm NOT going outside with my mask down."

She scooted closer, laying her head on his shoulder and looking up at him. He was aware of his heart beating choppily, but he was beginning to get used to it. It wasn't a surprise when she began tracing the scars on his face… More of an expectance by now.

A smile twitched it's way onto his face, which caused Zoey to smile as well. Again, not anything that wasn't rather predictable. They stayed like this until Rythian caught a glimpse of the orange hue to the sky out the window. He gently removed the princess' hand from his face, and pulled his mask back up again.

"Time to go, Zoey." He said simply, and she backed off so that he could get up. After he'd stood, he turned and offered her his hand. She frowned slightly, but knew they had to go now or else everyone would get worried, and took it.

They walked out to the tree where the horses were tied, untangled the reins from the tree branches, mounted, and rode back into the forest. While they rode quickly, there were no more races, Rythian a bit unnerved by the war and the decreasing light level. He would have been fine with both these things on his own, but… The last thing he wanted was for Zoey to get hurt.

They reached the gates of Rythian's family fortress a few minutes before night fell, and dismounted just outside the stables. They led Ghost and Willow in, removed their riding gear, and let them into their stalls. Zoey wanted to stay with Willow for another moment or two, so her guardian stayed as well. Not like he had anything better to do, after all.

Soon enough, though, she started yawning and rubbing her eyes. Rythian chuckled lightly. "Tired, Zoeya?" He asked with a teasing tone, and she shoved him playfully in response.

He simply laughed. "Come on, let's get you to bed." She nodded, rubbing her eyes again as she followed him back out into the night. She grabbed his arm in hers again, leaning on him and yawning.

They walked to Zoey's room like that, and when they got there, she released him and flopped onto her bed. "WHY am I so tired?" She asked, thinking aloud. Rythian responded "Well, I don't imagine sleeping on a stone balcony last night was too comfortable…"

She giggled, teasing "Your blankets made it a lot more bearable." He cleared his throat in and attempt to hide his embarrassment, saying rather hurriedly "Yeah, well I couldn't let you freeze, could I?" She giggled at him again. "No, I suppose you never could stay mad at me."

"That's not what I meant!" Rythian snapped, flustered. Zoey only laughed again, saying "I know, I know. You need to calm down a little!"

He took a deep breath and apologized. She smiled at him. "Good. Now, let me go to bed!"

He rolled his eyes again, but left anyways, bidding her a good night as he did. When he was gone, Zoey giggled again. He was so funny when he was embarrassed! As she settled down for bed, she thought about the night prior, snuggled into his blankets.

When she thought about it, she realized that he hadn't had blankets that night. While he couldn't have been as cold as she was without them, it had to have been uncomfortable. She smiled. He did these odd little things for her that she'd never quite understand, but always appreciate.

He had always done them, ever since they had first met all those years ago. She had a feeling he always would, too. Maybe they had something to do with him loving her? She had noticed her dad did similar things for her mom a lot….

She thought on this as she fell asleep, remembering something odd that had happened while she and Rythian were sitting on the couch in his cabin. When she laid her head on his shoulder, it brought her a strange sense of contentment. Like she could sit there with him forever and ever and everything would be fine. She just figured it was because she hadn't seen him in awhile, and she was happy enough that he was out of his room again.

But it wasn't just that. No, it was something more. Much more.


	11. Chapter 10

Rythian woke the next morning still tired. He had been up most of the night before tossing and turning, mulling over the events of that day. Zoey hadn't acted really any different around him, even knowing what he felt for her. It both relieved and stressed him.

Either she was ignoring the fact he loved her and trying to keep their lives normal, or she was acting normal so as not to alarm him or make him worried. The first option would consequently mean that she didn't want him to be in love with her, and by ignoring it hoped it would just go away. The latter, however, would mean that she held at least some feelings for him, and cared enough that seeing him worried over her would cause guilt, or something like it.

He preferred the 2nd option, as it was the one that calmed him. He severely hoped that she would find that she loved him. Otherwise the rest of their lives would be quite awkward.

He shook himself of these thoughts and prepared himself for the day, briefly glancing at the purple cape -now hanging in his closet- that Zoey had made him wear on the night of her birthday party. It seemed so long ago now, when in reality it had only been a few weeks ago. He remembered slamming Lalna against that wall…. He would pay to do that again, especially now.

The bastard had forced he, Zoey, and Lomadia into hiding. He had killed quite a few of the kingdom's people, burned forests and towns…. His troops were the reason for the scars on his face and the death of his father, and right from the start he had tormented Zoeya. Rythian would never forgive Lalna for any of this, and he would pay almost anything to personally run his katar through the prince's throat.

He shook his head. Enough of that. He would only anger himself, and now was no time to be angry. Zoey was waiting for him out in the hall.

He emerged from his room and she crossed her arms. "Took you long enough!" She said, and he chuckled slightly, replying rather mockingly "Sorry, Miss Impatient, I didn't mean to keep you waiting for all of 2 minutes."

Zoey rolled her eyes, and the two of them began walking down to the dining hall for breakfast. "Did you sleep okay?" She soon asked, breaking the silence that had settled over them a few moments earlier. He scoffed.

"Do I EVER 'sleep okay'?" He asked incredulously, and she giggled slightly and shook her head. "No, I suppose you don't…." After another moment or two, she resumed her usual schedule of babbling about whatever popped into her head.

"Anyways, I had this dream last night where I had a pet mooshroom, and Teep was a dinosaur! And you were there, too!" She said excitedly, launching into full detail of the dream adventures she'd had. Rythian simply smiled slightly to himself and listened, as he always did.

They reached the breakfast table just as the food was being served. Each teen sat next to their mother just as they had the previous night. They ate mostly in silence, and Rythian could tell Zoey was about to burst with her own energy by the time everyone finished. She excused herself from the table as soon as she could, and he followed but a moment after.

He found her near the stables, entertaining herself by flying up and down repeatedly. He laughed when he saw her, and she looked up at him and smiled, landing on the ground again and asking "Ryth, can we fly somewhere today?" He agreed nonchalantly, which made her smile again.

"Yay! Should we go the same place we did yesterday?" She asked, and he shrugged. "We can go pretty much wherever you want, as long as it's not dangerous." She thought for a moment.

"Hmm…. Actually, I think we should go to your cabin again. I like the pond there." She decided after a minute, then looked expectantly at her guardian and hovered off the ground.

He chuckled quietly. "Fair enough, let's go." She smiled, and the two of them flew over the outer walls of the fortress and over the treetops. Zoey was having a hard time keeping up with Rythian, and had to call his name multiple times to get him to slow down.

Finally, he just got tired of stopping and waiting, so he grabbed her hand and led her along at his own speed. She had been scared of running into something, and had been going a lot slower than was necessary. He was just helping her along. It might have just been an excuse to hold her hand, but it was a good one in his eyes.

When they arrived at the clearing, landing on the grass with a soft thud, Zoey realized she'd been laughing the entire time. The adrenaline rush flying at those speeds gave her was better than riding Willow full gallop. Rythian released her hand and let her catch her breath while he sat by the pond waiting for her. After she'd collected herself she sat down beside him, sighing happily.

"That was fun!" She exclaimed, and he smiled beneath the dark cloth of his mask. "I can see you enjoyed it!" He joked, bringing another wide smile to the princess' face.

She soon went into rambling mode, talking about whatever happened to pop into her brain at the moment. He didn't know how long she'd talked before pausing and looking at his mask. "Can I?" She asked, and knowing what she wanted, Rythian nodded.

With a smile she pulled down the mask, revealing the crooked half-smile he almost always wore around her. She then resumed her chatter, talking about how funny it was to her that water made people's hair look darker even though it was clear. She came up with multiple crazy-sounding explanations for why this was, such as water was actually secretly colored and not clear like everyone thought. He simply smiled and acted like that was a completely rational answer.

Soon enough, Zoey grew tired of talking and simply reached into the pond and splashed water around, at first just swirling it about and watching the current, but soon enough she ended up splashing Rythian in the face. "Got you!" She squealed, and he retaliated with a splash in her face. She squeaked when the cold water hit her, and soon enough the two of them were in a water war, splashing it in each other's faces and laughing.

When Zoey hit him in the face for at least the 12th time, Rythian said "Oh, that's it!" and tackled her to the ground. They rolled around for a minute or two, both of them laughing like maniacs but neither of them caring much. Eventually he came up on top, holding her wrists to the ground as gently as he could without letting her break his grip and saying triumphantly "I win!"

Both of them were still laughing, and he actually forgot for awhile that his mask was down. For a few moments, he didn't even remember he had scars to hide. When their laughter died down, he realized how close they were to each other, but he couldn't make himself move for the life of him. He was stuck in the eyes of the fire-haired princess.

He didn't even realize he'd been leaning towards her until their noses touched. That was enough to bring him back to his senses. He blinked, snapping back to reality, and then cleared his throat and released her. He pulled his mask back up to hide the blush forming on his face, and sat a meter or so away from her.

Zoey stared blankly at the sky above her. Then she blinked a few times and looked to Rythian, who was staring intently at the rings on his fingers, watching how they caught the light of the mid-afternoon sun. She'd been holding her breath, she realized, and let it out in the form of a long sigh. She was strangely sad, she discovered as she sat up.

The two of them were silent for a long time, she staring at her reflection in the pond while he continued to study his rings. 'What the hell is wrong with you?!' He asked himself. 'What were you thinking, trying to pull something like that!'

….That was just it, though, wasn't it? He hadn't been thinking. He broke the silence, muttering "Sorry about that… I lost hold of myself for a second there."

He looked at her nervously, and she looked at him. "It's okay." Was all she said, and then looked back to her reflection in the water. Rythian watched her for a second or two longer, feeling like he'd just ruined their friendship.

He'd scared her, hadn't he? Not in the way he would if he'd yelled at her -and I mean REALLY yelled- but he'd intimidated her with these emotions she didn't understand. He tried apologizing again. "Really, Zoey, I didn't mean-" she cut him off.

"It's okay, Rythian!" She assured him, smiling slightly. He must've looked doubtful, because she rolled her eyes and said "You still don't believe me, do you?" He sighed, admitting "No, not really."

She rolled her eyes again, and scooted next to him so that she could lay her head on his shoulder. When she did, she wrapped her arms around his arm, and felt the tension in his body relax. "See?" she said "Everything's fine!"

He looked at her for a moment, and she looked at him. Finally, he nodded. "Okay, if you say so…" Zoey smiled.

"Good. Now then, I think we should get back, because I'm hungry, and I'm pretty sure we're late for lunch!" She said, and Rythian looked up at the sun's position in the sky. "Alright, let's go then" he agreed.

The two of them stood, Zoey releasing his arm and shooting up into the sky. He followed close behind her, and they reached the fortress in half the time. Instead of sitting through the formal meal, Rythian snuck into the kitchen, and Ravs fixed he and Zoey a lunch by themselves. He thanked him and snuck back out of the kitchen to find her waiting for him in the garden.

He handed her one of the bags, and sat down next to her on the bench she'd situated herself on. They ate in silence, which drove him nearly to the edge of madness. Zoey was ALWAYS talking, and when she didn't, she had something on her mind. He got the feeling it had to do with him.

She was the first to finish, and -as usual- the first to speak. "So, erm, what now?" She asked uncertainly, and Rythian shrugged. "Whatever you want, I guess."

She fell silent again, staring off in what he knew to be the direction of the castle. "Well, I kinda wanna go get something from my room back home…." He shook his head, saying "Oh HELL no. There's a reason your dad sent you and your mother off with me, and I don't think he'd take kindly to me taking you back."

"But it's only one thing!" Zoeya insisted, and Rythian retorted "Then it's not worth risking your life for, now is it?" She pouted, but he wasn't about to give in. She could be in serious danger if they went anywhere near the castle, though he understood she was probably homesick.

"Anywhere else you'd like to go?" He asked, and she thought for a moment. "Not particularly, but I wouldn't mind going back to where we were." He shrugged, and gave his famous answer to almost everything: "Fair enough."

With that they flew back into the forest, and soon arrived at the small house's clearing. Zoey mostly messed about in and around the pond, while Rythian read the book he'd brought with him. He kept a close eye on her though, as always. As time drew on, she began to bore of the pond, and walked up to him, the hem of her dress dripping wet, and her shoes laying forgotten on the other side of the body of water.

He watched her as she sat down beside him and began wringing out the end of her simple white dress, honestly rather nervous. He soon went back to his book, however, seeing she was rather focused on ridding her dress of water. They sat in silence, though it wasn't so much tense as awkward. Very awkward.

Neither of them really knew what to do about the other, or themselves for that matter. Just before sunset, the silence was broken abruptly by the sound of multiple horses' hooves pounding the forest floor. Rythian was on his feet before he knew what he was doing, Zoey right along behind him. He listened, and heard accents and a voice he recognized. Neither of them were friendly.

"It's Lalna and a band of his soldiers!" He said, cursing user his breath, grabbing the princess, leading her quickly into the house, pulling the secret lever, and descending the hidden stairs as fast as humanly possible. He kept the lights off and hit the switch that would close the stairway behind him. The voices above them were almost audible now, and he tugged Zoeya into a corner of the room and pulled her against him, draping his cape over the both of them and whispering an enchantment that would make them invisible.

Muffled thuds on the ground above them meant the men and their prince were getting off their horses. Barely audible voices followed. "Someone's here. Search the premises." Lalna ordered.

"Forgive me, your highness," a soldier's voice said "but how can you tell? This place looks completely deserted to me." A pause, probably the prince scoffing. "Because, you fool, there's a pair of women's shoes over there, and it's obvious they've been worn recently."

Zoey let out a panicked squeak, and Rythian clamped a hand over her mouth, unsure whether his heart-rate's speed was because of her or the group above them. Her breathing was turning more into hyperventilation, and he buried his face in her hair and shushed her as quietly as he could. 'Here's your chance to kill Lalna, and you're hiding?' Some darker part of him said. 'I have to protect Zoey,' he reminded himself.

The soldier who'd spoken earlier spoke again. "Alright, you heard him! Search the property!" The door to the house opened, and multiple sets of footsteps stampeded through the small space.

'You could take them. All of them, and you know you could.' The voice in Rythian's head said, and again he retorted with 'I have to protect Zoey.' He held her tighter to help affirm this.

The soldiers moved to the center of the room. The footsteps stopped. Another, single set entered the cottage. Lalna.

'He's directly above you! Do it know!' The sinister voice said, and though it was almost unbearably tempting, he refused the darkness again. 'I swore on my life I'd protect her, and that's just what I'm going to do.'

"No one here, sir." A soldier above them said, and another pause as Lalna scoffed. He walked to the bookshelf, and stopped there. Rythian held his breath and hoped with all his might he wouldn't happen upon the book that opened the stairwell.

To his dismay, he heard the redstone in the walls hum to life. The prince had discovered the basement they were hiding in. Zoey almost screamed, but he hushed her again. The lights flicked on.

If not for the invisibility spell, they would've been discovered right then and there. Instead, Ciencian soldiers poured into the room, Prince Lalna following not far behind them. Rythian and Zoeya watched him stride down the stairs as if he owned the place, the same smug grin on his face he normally had. His green cape flourished behind him, though the rest of his clothes were white, as usual.

'He's right in front of you. You can end this war before it even really begins. If he dies, so many others live.' The voice again beckoned Rythian, and subconsciously his right hand came to rest on his katar's handle.

He struggled more to control himself, every muscle in his body wanting to leap from the corner and drive his sword into the foreign prince's stomach. Zoeya was the only thing keeping him where he was. If he killed Lalna, one of the guards would go for her, most likely holding her hostage. He really didn't want that situation to deal with. He traced a message on the princess' arm with his finger. "Don't move."

Lalna looked nonchalantly around the room. "It took someone of a high intellect to think up all this. Someone of decent fortune, too, considering the old books, and the redstone it probably took to build the hidden stairway." He noted, studying the sketches on the walls.

"Sketches of a Destruction Catalyst, Catalytic Lense, Red Katar…. That explains a lot. It's a mage." He continued, looking to his soldiers. They shifted nervously, and one of them spoke.

"F-Forgive me, Your Excellency, but, uh, if the person who owns this place is a mage, could they, erm, be in this room and we wouldn't know it?" Lalna laughed openly at this. "It's barely possible! A mage who can make him or her person invisible? That would take a very potent power indeed. You'd need at least two sorcerers to pull it off for an extended period of time!"

'Now he is insulting your ability! Are you just going to sit here and take that?' The dark voice said, and outrage boiled at the back of Rythian's mind, but he did his best to banish it. His sword hand clenched the katar's handle now with a white-knuckle grip.

"However…." Lalna said after a moment's contemplation "There are a few select mages who could do so. One of them being the Princess Zoeya's bodyguard. He is a rather potent magical force, to be sure….." He left his statement hanging in the air, trying to frighten his men. He then suddenly laughed, like it was the best joke in the world.

"But he's probably feeding on the scraps she throws him like the dog he is, somewhere in the castle. That's why we're headed there again. I need the princess. She's an essential pawn in this game."

'He has basically just called you a bitch, and said Zoeya was just a pawn in his game. You're not going to fight for her?' The voice said, and Rythian was finding it was becoming much harder to refuse it.

"Now then, off to the royal palace!" Lalna said, and the men scrambled back up the stairs like their lives depended on it. They probably did. Lalna glanced around the room again, and his eyes came to rest on the hiding spot of the invisible pair. Both of them held their breath, and he watched the spot for a few moments before shrugging to himself and ascending the staircase.

The lights flicked off, and the stairs closed behind him. Zoey and Rythian sat in still silence until the sound of the horses thundering through the forest faded completely away to so much as breathe. The enchantment dissolved around them, and he flicked the cape off of their heads.

"They're headed for the castle, Rythian….. We have to warn dad!" She said, standing abruptly. He knew she couldn't see, but he could. He stood as well, saying "You mean I have to warn him. I'm not taking you anywhere near Lalna, especially to a soon-to-be battlefield." He said "Lalna" with great disgust.

"But-" she objected, only to be cut off by her guardian "No buts, Zoeya. I'm taking you back to the fortress and I'm going myself. I can make it there in time if I teleport through the woods." A ball of purple light appeared in his hand, and he pulled the lever that would send the staircase back down. Light poured into the space, and he grabbed the princess' hand and led her as quickly as he could out of the building.

They flew as fast as they possibly could back to the fortress, and Rythian quickly located his mother. He released Zoey and said sternly "Don't let her out of your sight. I'll be back soon." She was confused, but nodded.

Zoey kept shaking her head, panicking. "Ryth, no! Please, come back!" She called after him as he stalked out of the room. She caught him just as he was entering the next room. She grabbed his arm. The door closed behind them.

She then did something that surprised the both of them. She tugged his mask down and flew up and kissed him. Just like that.

It was the cliché dramatic kiss, arms flung around each other, eyes closed, the whole lot. When she released him, she said simply "For luck." He let her go, pulled his mask back up, and turned and ran down the hall. She watched him, and then turned around and went back in the room to explain what the hell was going on to Cecilia.

He, meanwhile, was teleporting and flying and running his way through the forest, and then the plain, and then the forest again. He didn't stop, didn't think about stopping. He came upon an encampment of Ciencian soldiers in the deepest darkest part of the forests surrounding the Castle of Tekkitopia. He noted their position, went around them, and kept going.

He reached the gates of the palace, flew over the walls, and raced to the war room. He at least hoped to find one of the generals there, if not Xephos himself. He passed many puzzled guards, a few frightened servants, and soon burst into the chamber to find the entire royal council seated there.

Immediately, they ceased in whatever discussion they were having to stare at the panting knight with glowing purple eyes. Xephos was the first to react. "Rythian what the hell are you doing-" He demanded rather loudly, only to be cut off by the teen.

"Lalna's coming," he managed to say between breaths. "He's got an entire army hidden in the southern forest. At least a thousand men, if not more."

Homeydew spoke now. "What?! We don't have half that here! They're all in Ciencia at the fort we captured!" Rythian shook his head. "Doesn't matter. He's coming now." He looked to the king. "Sir, I strongly suggest you get the hell out of here."

Xephos shook his head, turning to one of his lower generals, a middle-aged man named Toby. "Amass all the forces and set them around the perimeter. Tell them they absolutely can NOT retreat. They must hold the line. My orders." The man nodded and left quickly, running down the hall towards the barracks.

General Honeydew spoke the same concern as Rythian had. "Xephos, I suggest you evacuate, along with the servants." The king ignored his friend, speaking a set of orders to the head of the archers, Martyn. He too turned and ran for the barracks.

Soon enough, everyone but Xephos, Honeydew, and Rythian had left with orders from the king. Both of them said again that he should evacuate, and he looked at them both and shook his head. "I will not leave my people here and flee like a coward. I will stay, and I will fight if necessary."

"Oh like hell you will!" the dwarven general shouted, and the young knight retorted as well, though calmer and more eloquently. "Xephos, please, go to my mother's estate. Be with your family. Let us handle the fight."

As usual, Rythian's skill with words swayed the king. The mention of the rest of the Royal Family had done most of the work. He continued "This kingdom needs you, Xephos, but not on the battlefield. Do not risk your life when there are people perfectly capable and willing to fight that horde. We have to get you somewhere safe, and before the actual attack starts."

He considered this for a moment. "Alright, fine. You've convinced me. Now get me out of here before I change my mind." He said rather bitterly, and he and Honeydew went down to the stables to fetch a horse for each of them.

Rythian waited until they were out of sight to start to teleport around. His plan? He would find Teep and help defend this castle, if it was the last thing he ever did.


	12. Chapter 11

When Rythian flew up and landed on the outer walls of the castle, the prognosis did not look good. Ciencian soldiers hid in the cover of the trees, setting up cannons and ducking when they saw an archer pull his bow string. No one but Tee could even hit anyone. Rythian pulled out his own bow and helped him, though the two of them didn't really make much difference. Martyn himself soon came up on the wall and began taking shots. He took down a few more before the soldiers just pulled the cannons further into the woods. The cover of the trees was too thick for the arrows to pierce. The archers had lost their opportunity.

Toby ordered the cannons already on the walls to be prepared to be fired. If they could help it, they were firing the first shot. Rythian flew off the walls and joined the soldiers on the ground, feeling he'd do more good there. He saw quite a few familiar faces. He'd lived there half his life, after all. He was bound to recognize the palace guards.

They seemed shocked he was there, but nevertheless kept their attention strained on the forests around them. Barriers had been put up where the horse pastures met the castle, -high ones with spikes at the tops and sides- in order to prevent the enemy from breaking into the inner sanctums of the castle.

Rythian had already put on his Gem Armor, and the rest of the soldiers, depending on rank, wore either diamond or dark matter. Tekkitopia recognized the benefits of magic, mostly because he and Zoeya had convinced Xephos and Lomadia of it's usefulness.

He watched the tree line carefully, his special eyes letting him see a bit better in the shadows than the others. Occasionally he saw movement, but no definitive figures. It could have been a squirrel he'd seen, for all he knew. For once, his heightened senses had done no good.

Suddenly, the bang of a cannon sounded, and the screams of men being blown off the walls of the Castle of Tekkitopia were heard. The third battle of the war had begun.

The Tekkitopians returned fire. So did the Ciencians. The two sides fired artillery until they ran out. Arrows, cannonballs… Hell, Rythian even threw the occasional fireball. When they ran out of ammunition, the enemy charged from the forest, screaming and yelling like the barbarians they were.

Xephos' soldiers stayed put, taking up defensive positions and bracing themselves. The two armies met in loud clangs of metal and cries of pain from those who were hit by their enemies. The Ciencians picked Rythian out as the possible leader because of his armor, and a large group of them surrounded him. He drew his katar, and the one directly behind him took his swing.

Time seemed to slow.

Rythian spun around and blocked the diamond blade, parrying and sending the aggressor stumbling into one of Xephos' men. Another soldier swung at him, and he dropped to the ground and kicked his feet out from under him. He rolled out of the way of another sword that had attempted to impale his chest, and kicked this attacker in the head, effectively knocking him out. He stood again, and another blade came at him. He teleported and reappeared sticking his blade through the heart of the man from behind.

There were 3 left. The one to his left tried to stab him, but Rythian sidestepped, switched sword hands, and drove his katar through the enemy soldier's throat. His eyes now glowed an intense purple, and combining this, the bloody -though already red- armor and sword, the black mask, and the cape with the eyes, he was extremely intimidating.

He turned to the remaining two soldiers, and they readied themselves for his attack as best they could, but they stood no chance. He pulled out a second katar, one for each hand, and took them both on at once. He struck simultaneously, applying equal force to both arms as he tried to break their defenses. His swords' blades slid to the hilts of theirs. He flicked his wrists, disarmed them both, an drove his katars through their chests. They dropped when he wrenched his swords free.

He scanned the mass of fighting for Lalna. He found him hanging at the back of the battle, watching with the usual smug grin, clad in diamond armor. Apparently he wasn't worried about an attack. Rage boiled in Rythian's blood at the sight of him. He had no guards. No one was watching him. The archers had drawn their swords and gone to the ground to help the battlefield. The generals were busy helping their men. This was his chance.

He teleported behind the prince. He spun around when he heard the slight sound the appearance made. "Hello, Lalna…" Rythian growled, spinning his katars anxiously in his hands. He was itching for a real fight, and he knew Lalna would give him one.

He smiled. "Rythian! I'm surprised your not nipping at the princess' heels! Where is the fire-haired girl, anyways..?" Rythian scoffed. If he thought he was that stupid, this was going to be too easy. "Safe." Was all he said.

The two were circling each other, and Lalna now had his enchanted diamond sword drawn. Apparently he was as ready for a fight as Rythian. He laughed. "Oh, you think you'll get by with that answer? No matter. I'll get it out of you after you're begging for mercy."

Rythian scoffed. "Begging from the likes of you? I'll die before I beg for anything from you, and I'll die before I tell you where Zoey is." He said, and without warning, Lalna struck at him. Rythian parried, and he countered. The flashes and clanging of their swords echoed around them as they fought.

The prince sounded unhinged when he spoke. "You think so, do you?! You have no idea what I can do!" He shouted, and at this the mage scoffed, teleporting behind him again and said tauntingly in his ear "Ditto."

He teleported to his left, his defenseless side, and struck with both katars towards his head. Lalna jumped back. The swords missed him by centimeters. The fight continued, the same cycle repeating over and over. Strike, block, parry, strike, dodge, strike, block, parry, strike, dodge, strike….

Lalna pulled a surprise move as the sun rose, kicking Rythian in the chest and sending him stumbling backwards. He then turned to his men and yelled "RETREAT!" at the top of his lungs. Though the army was feet away from winning the battle, they had to follow orders.

Rythian teleported back to the wall, and the Ciencians fled back into the trees. Cries of triumph rang out from the army of King Xephos, all of them celebrating but Rythian. He simply glared silently at the tree-line and put away his katars. He had missed his chance. He had failed.

Within minutes the army learned from scouts that Xephos had called for immediate reinforcements before he'd left, and in the hours the battle had dragged on, they were able to get far enough as to finish chasing the enemy back into their lands. They could at least sleep in beds tonight.

Rythian was praised as the hero of the battle for causing Lalna to give the order to retreat. "Otherwise," a soldier said to him later "we would've been overrun, and lost the castle to the Ciencians." He accepted everyone's congratulations, but he still felt he had failed by not killing Lalna.

He took off his bloodied armor and went off to find Tee. He had been wounded in the battle, like so many others. He found him in the infirmary, sitting on a bed, his right shoulder and his chest bandaged. After verifying his friend would be fine, Rythian left.

He flew over the trees towards his family home, still rather blood-spattered, and with quite a few deep gashes where his armor hadn't covered. He had neglected to bring his lifestone with him that morning to the woods. He didn't think he'd need it.

The pain from his wounds had taken until he flew over the walls of the fortress to really settle in, and it didn't happen slowly, either. It felt like someone had thrown him in a pile of needles and old saw-blades, and then dropped a brick wall on top of him.

He entered the main parlor to find everyone waiting for him, including the king and Honeydew. Xephos sat with his wife on one of the couches, Honeydew sat with Cecilia on another, and Zoey had been pacing the room before he'd entered. Everyone stood and stared at him when he did. All except the princess.

She ran straight to him, hugged him as tight as she could, and said "Rythain I swear to Notch that if you ever do anything like that ever again I will personally slap you across the face!" He winced and said "Hello to you too, Zoey… Now, erm, could you stop squeezing me?"

She squeaked an apology and let him go, and turned to find that everyone else now surrounded the two of them in a loose semi-circle. Cecilia addressed her sons' wounds, Lomadia asked if the castle was okay, and Honeydew and. Xephos inquired about the battle itself.

"Did we beat them?" The general asked, his question closely followed by the king's. "How many of us are dead? How many wounded?"

Rythian winced as his mother prodded his ribs. "Ow ow ow! Mom!" He exclaimed, and she withdrew her hands, mumbling that his ribs were bruised. The knight then turned and answered the groups' questions.

"The only damage I saw was a few dislodged bricks on the top of the walls from cannons. 20-some are dead, at least 60 or so wounded. We managed to force them to retreat. Ask anyone else there and they'll tell you it was because of me fighting Lalna and putting him two inches from his death, but I believe it was all of us."

He winced again as his mother twisted his arm to see a wound better. "My arm doesn't go that way!" He exclaimed through clenched teeth, and again she withdrew.

"The reinforcements you called arrived in time to chase them all the way back Ciencia, or so I've heard." He continued, and Zoey now helped his frazzled mother be more careful with her examination. Tears were welling into her eyes, and Rythian remembered how she'd done the same thing when his dad came back wounded from battles. He then realized she was getting overwhelmed with memories.

He gently pushed her off him and said "Why don't you go outside for a second, mom?" She simply nodded and left quickly, and Lomadia followed after her. The two had become good friends since the three had first arrived here, and she was -naturally- concerned.

Xephos and Honeydew went off to start planning the next move of the army and arrange for the king to return to the castle, and left the room. This left Zoey and Rythian by themselves, and when she finished checking him over, hugged him again. This embrace was more gentle, and he brought his arms around her, even though it brought a twinge of pain to his shoulders.

"You really scared me, Ryth." She said, and he managed a slight chuckle. "I guess that makes up for all the times you've scared me, eh Zoey?" At this she let him go, stepped back, and put her hands on her hips. "And when, exactly, have I ever scared you?" She demanded, and he smiled beneath his mask.

"Oh tons of times," he said. "There was the time you got bucked off your horse and nearly got trampled, and there was that time you nearly fell off the castle wall and I had to catch you before you hit the ground…. I could go on and on." She considered his statement and frowned.

"Alright, so maybe there's been a few times…." She grudgingly admitted, pouting, and he smiled, pulling her back into a hug. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and they stayed like that for awhile. He let her go after remembering he was still bleeding a bit from his wounds.

"I think I'd better go get my lifestone… I'm still kinda bleeding a little." He said, and Zoey followed him up to his rooms to get it. He grabbed it off his dresser and activated it, sighing with relief as the magic coursed through him and fixed his injuries. Once the pain was gone, he realized his poor clothes were sweaty, and slightly bloody.

He grabbed a different set of clothes and ducked into his bathroom and changed. Zoey waited for him on his balcony, watching the stars and the moon in the night sky. When he emerged his cape was gone, and he wore his black muscle shirt with dark brown pants. His mask was still firmly affixed to his face, and he wore no shoes.

She smiled when he came out and leaned on the railing beside her. His wounds were healed, though in some places there were clearly defined scars. It was funny to him that he hadn't even thought he was injured. He hadn't felt anyone hit him with anything…. Oh well. Must have been adrenaline.

"No cape?" Zoey asked, and he shrugged. "It needs washed out. It's got, you know, blood on it." He said nervously. He knew she hated violence. She seemed indifferent, though, or at least she acted like it.

Then she noticed other scars on his back. Scars that weren't where he'd had injuries. "Rythian, what happened here?" She said, walking over and indicating one of them. He shrugged again. "Must've happened a few years ago. Remember when I got pushed around by that bodyguard of that noble? He pushed me into some gravel and it scraped me up pretty good."

Zoey scoffed. "You kicked his butt afterwards, though. I swear his jaw was broken." Rythian laughed. "Sorry, not possible. I was 13, if you'll recall. He had to be 20-something." She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

They were silent for awhile, and he remembered the kiss she'd given him before he'd left for the battle. He watched her now as she gazed at the stars and the moon, and wondered if she did really love him.

It may seem obvious to you or I, but he was an over-thinker. He always found a way to turn the simplest questions into brain teasers. He noticed she was shivering as he watched her, and feeling he was beyond the point of hiding his emotions, wrapped his arms around her in an attempt to keep her from freezing.

She jumped at first contact, but relaxed after a second or two. "You're cold." Rythian stated, resting his chin on her head. She stuttered slightly as she observed "And you're w-warm." He looked at her with a puzzling look on his face. "Zoeya, are you nervous?" He asked, unusually using her full name.

She looked at her feet, blushing. "A little, I guess…" She said. Her reasoning? She'd kissed him, and now that she had she had thought that he would act weird around her again….. She hadn't expected him to do this. Not at all.

They had been right in their observations, though. He was warm, and she was definitely cold. It was comforting to have him hold her like this, nerve-racking as it may have been. It was almost midnight, and she was beginning to think she would just fall asleep right there when Rythian released her.

She stepped back, trying to keep herself from shaking. It was like adrenaline when he was close to her, and she realized she'd felt the same sensation when she'd kissed him earlier that day. Much stronger, of course, but obviously the same feeling.

"I'm getting tired, Ryth, I think I'll go to bed." Zoey said, unsure of how else to react. She could tell he smiled at her. "Alright, goodnight, Zoey." He said, and walked over and opened the balcony door for her. She smiled and thanked him, though she was rather anxious to leave. Her natural instinct was to avoid the awkwardness she felt at the edge of the atmosphere around them.

After she was through, he followed behind and closed the door. Her hand was on the other doorknob when he said suddenly "Zoey?" She turned, and he stood a meter or so away from her. "About earlier…. The luck came in handy. Thanks." He said, and she blushed at the coy smile she knew his mask hid.

"Goodnight, Rythian." She insisted, and turned and left the room, hearing a quiet chuckle come from her guardian as she did. When her own door clicked shut behind her, she let out a shaky breath. She didn't understand what this was….

She got ready for bed, laid down, and thought for a minute about the day. First an almost kiss at the forest, the run-in with Lalna… Then a rush back to the castle, a real kiss, and quite a few nerve-racking hours of waiting. After Rythian got back, it had mostly just been the two of them, until this moment as she tried to sleep. What a day.

He had been so open with her, it had actually surprised -and even slightly overwhelmed- her. It was obvious he wasn't scared of his emotions anymore….. But was she?


	13. Chapter 12

Zoey awoke the next morning earlier than usual, at first swearing she'd heard someone scream her name, but she shook it off and began getting ready for the day. She was out on her balcony watching the sunrise when she heard it again. Her and Rythian's rooms were on the opposite end of the fortress from anyone else's, and it was too early for anyone else to be up. It took her until the third time to realize the shouting was coming from the room next to hers. Rythian's room.

She panicked, and raced to the balcony doors. When she burst into the room she found nothing seemingly out of place. The only thing wrong was Rythian himself. He was thrashing around on the bed, screaming her name with eyes squeezed shut, his fists clenched tightly around his sheets. Without his mask, the look of panic and worry on his sleeping self's face was clearly visible. He was suffering from a terrifying nightmare.

He looked like a madman, and she was scared for a split second to approach him, but when she heard the desperation and pain his voice, as he called her name again she went over to him immediately. She reached her hand out and rested it on his cheek, saying gently "Rythian it's okay, I'm here, it's okay…" He stopped thrashing and said her name softer, his facial features relaxing. His hands released the sheets, and he fell into a much calmer sleep.

This peace didn't last long, however. After a minute or two he twitched, a look of pure anguish and shock crossing his face, though he still slept somehow. He then began pleading with her to run, his fists reclenching the sheets, and his entire body beginning to spasm again. She said his name, panic slipping into her own voice as he thrashed around again, repeatedly screaming for her to run.

She grew louder and louder until his eyes snapped open and he sat bolt upright, screaming one last time for her to run. He breathed heavily, a cold sweat gathering on his forehead as he looked around wildly. Zoey reached out and touched his shoulder, which caused him to jump and turn to look at her. "Zoey!" He exclaimed, looking around again before breathing "It was only a dream… Another stupid dream."

He sighed heavily and fell back on his bed, waiting until his breathing steadied to speak again. "Did I wake you?" He asked, looking to the princess. She shook her head. "No, but you did scare me half to death." He sighed and asked "What was I doing?"

She explained what she'd seen and heard, and when she finished Rythian stared at the ceiling and said soberly "Sounds about right. I had a dream that I was in the woods at night, and I couldn't find you anywhere. I was panicking when you showed up out of nowhere, and for a minute or so I just made sure you were okay and told you never to scare me like that again…." He paused, glancing at her.

"The rest is a bit of a blur, but I remember a searing pain shooting through my leg, and I remember falling. I kept telling you to run, but you wouldn't leave. I heard an arrow fly, and I saw your eyes widen… And then I woke up." He finished, and rubbed his eyes to hide the tears forming there. Zoey frowned at seeing him so sad, and when he sat up she scooted closer to him and wrapped her arms around his middle.

He smiled slightly and returned her embrace, setting his head on top of hers and burying his face in her hair, closing his eyes. They stayed like that for awhile, though Zoey asked "Do you have nightmares a lot?" He nodded, saying quietly "Part of the reason I don't sleep is because every time I do I have a nightmare or two."

She frowned again and looked up at him, forcing him to lift his head off of hers. "I'm sorry I cause you pain, even if it isn't real." She said, and Rythian shook his head, immediately replying "It's not your fault I worry about you. You don't have to apologize for existing, for Notch's sake!" She smiled slightly at his reaction, and reached up and rested her hand on his cheek again, saying light-heartedly "And you don't have to make such a big deal out of everything!"

The corners of his mouth twitched into his crooked smile, and Zoey smiled in response, as she always did. After a moment she snuggled back into his chest, taking her hand away from his face. He again rested his head on hers and closed his eyes. They sat like this for a long time, and soon enough she took notice of his heartbeat, which she could hear after resting her head on his chest.

It was faint to her at first. Just another sound in the background. Then after awhile she began to focus on the choppy beat, and it became the only sound she heard. Soon enough she found herself falling asleep, her eyes becoming harder to keep open and her mind becoming foggier. Rythian noticed, and he released her, snapping her out of it.

She pouted up at him and he managed a laugh, saying "Well don't look so mean! You know neither of us should fall asleep again…" Zoey rolled her eyes, seeing the wide smile that was spread across his face as he spoke. "I was comfortable!" She retorted, and he hesitated a moment. "…Alright, fair enough. But still, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me change…"

She again rolled her eyes, but left his room for her own, allowing him to prepare himself for the day. She entered her room and sat on her bed as she waited for him, contemplating what she'd just seen and heard. She'd never heard him sound so frantic as when he'd been having that nightmare. There'd been plenty of times he'd been a tiny bit panicked, but during the dream it had been full-on hysteria.

The other thing that got to her was that he was dreaming about her. When she'd put her hand on his cheek and told him she was there he relaxed almost instantly, too. She couldn't help but notice how peaceful he'd looked for those short-lived moments… And then he was even more frantic afterwards.

She couldn't quite come up with a word to describe the emotion in his voice during that nightmare… Not one that made sense to her, anyways. She kept wanting to say that he sounded scared, but she felt that even after seeing him discussing his father's death, she could never think of him as ever being frightened. In her mind he seemed too strong for that….. Just as she was beginning to second-guess herself, Rythian opened her door, snapping her out of her thoughts.

They greeted each other, and she got up and followed him down to the dining hall. Everyone else was beginning to gather there, Cecilia talking at the kitchen's serving window with Ravs as he prepared the breakfast for the morning. Rythian wanted to stop into the kitchen and say hello, but Zoey dragged him to a seat beside hers at the table.

Just then Lomadia and Xephos entered, Honeydew not far behind them. The king and queen were talking as quietly as they could, but Rythian heard their discussion anyways without really trying to. "I don't see why I must stay here, as much as I enjoy Cecilia's company. I'm worried about you all alone at the castle, and since Lalna's already launched an attack there once, I doubt he'll try again…." Lomadia said, but her husband shook his head. "I will not risk having you hurt because that foolish prince tries to attack the castle while you're there. While you make a valid point, it's much better to be safe than sorry." The king said, and from that point on Rythian tried to block out their conversation.

Apparently Zoey wasn't the only one getting homesick around here…. The princess poked him in the arm and said impatiently "What are you thinking about so intently this time? You've been ignoring me for the last minute or two!" He smiled at her and assured her it was nothing, but she looked at him skeptically for a moment before sighing in defeat and starting a new conversation.

Cecilia took her seat, and not long after that the food was served. The group ate mostly in silence, though Zoeya did briefly talk to her father about a few things. By the time everyone had finished their plates, Xephos was discussing leaving to go back to the castle. Both Lomadia and Zoey protested to this.

"You can't leave yet, dad!" The young princess said, and the queen supported her, agreeing as she said "You haven't even been here an entire day, and you know as well as I that you're in need of a break from military commands…." The king shook his head. "I can't stay, and both of you know it. If a spy of Lalna's finds out I'm here I'll compromise all the people here's lives. It's bad enough I have to worry about all the people at the palace."

He had made a valid point, but neither of them were going to let up on their argument. The discussion continued for quite some time, both sides making their points clear, though neither of them winning by doing so. Finally Rythian stepped into the conversation and said "Why don't you all just come to a compromise? Xephos, you stay for maybe a day or so longer, and Zoey and Lomadia let you leave when you wish next time… Sound like a deal?"

The three of them looked at him for a minute or so, contemplating, then they looked at each other. "Sounds fair to me," the king said, and his wife agreed. Zoey only looked knowingly at her guardian. He always knew just what to say, didn't he?

After the agreement was made, Zoey mostly hung around her parents, and soon enough Rythian slipped away from them, grabbing his book and going up onto the roof of the tower he and Zoey's rooms were in. The sun wasn't at the point where he'd roast, so he decided he might as well sit up here and read… Though most of the time he just sat there and thought.

He was happy for Zoey and Lomadia, knowing that Xephos would stay with them awhile longer. He could understand how stressful it was to have your father off in a war and not be able to see him. He wasn't going to get in the way of their family time, so he'd come to the roof. That and he needed to stop and think everything that had been happening to him lately over. Especially everything with Zoeya.

He may not have acted like it, but he hadn't just forgotten about what had happened between the two of them over the last week. That was hardly the case. Everything, especially the "luck" she'd given him, had been on his mind almost all the time. She was trying to ignore it to prevent awkwardness, possibly to prevent him from asking her again about how she felt. He shook his head. She'd have to face this eventually, and she knew it.

He attempted to read his book for awhile, and was finally starting to get into it when he heard Zoey calling his name from somewhere below him. He sighed and stowed the book away in his alchemical bag, calling almost impatiently "What, Zoey? I'm up here!"

After some confusion as to where "here" was, the princess flew up and landed on the roof beside him, hands on her hips as she said "How come you just like to disappear on me like this? One second you're standing right beside me, and the next you're up here reading? You could at least tell someone where you're going, for crying out loud!" She scolded, and Rythian chuckled under his breath as he apologized. Once she'd finished being frustrated with him, she sat beside him and said "My parents wanted to talk about the war, so I left. I hate when they start talking about the war."

He watched her with empathetic eyes as she explained further; "I don't see why wars should ever be necessary if people would just talk to each other democratically and compromise a little. Lalna could've just accepted my answer to his marriage proposals long ago, and none of this would have happened! But no, he had to go starting a war!" Rythian scoffed slightly at her last remark, knowing full well that eventually Lalna would've started a war, whether it had to do with her marrying him or not…. But he understood her point.

"War is never a pleasant thing, Zoey. You know that as well as I do." Rythian replied simply, and silence fell over the pair. He was watching the horizon, and after about 10 minutes he saw a horse speeding down the path from Ciencia. He was on his feet before he'd fully registered that the horse and rider were heading towards the stronghold's gates.

"Ryth?" Zoey asked, standing with him. "What's going on?" The knight ignored her question and focused on the horse and rider, seeing as they drew nearer that the rider was inevitably a Tekkitopian soldier, wearing Dark Matter armor, who had recently been through a battle. "Zoey go tell your parents that one of the the soldiers is here. Tell them to meet me at the southern courtyard." Rythian said quickly, and the princess only nodded and flew from the roof of the tower in search of the monarchs. He, however, flew down to tell the guards at the gatehouse to open the gates for the approaching person.

Once the gates were opened, the soldier sped in, greeted by only Rythian. It didn't surprise him that the rider was a woman. Tekkitopia was one of the few kingdoms in all of Minecraftia that allowed women to fight in their military, and even more rare, they received the same respect as any man would in the same situation.

As the woman brought her frightened steed to a halt, she spoke quickly "I must speak to King Xephos. Where is he?" Rythian took the reigns of the black and white horse she rode and replied "I've sent for him already. What's your name, soldier?" The woman removed her helm, revealing short black hair as she said simply "My name is Kim, Lord Rythian." She dismounted her horse, and a servant came to take it to the stables. The guardian handed the reigns over and continued to converse with Kim.

"I figured you'd know who I was, considering you knew the king was here." He said light-heartedly. She laughed and replied "Are you kidding? Everyone in the entire military knows who you are! You're the extraordinary Rythian Enderborn, Royal Protector to Princess Zoeya and the youngest person to ever reach full knighthood! You're a legend among the ranks, sir." He rolled his eyes. "Just call me Rythian. I'm no higher level a person than you are."

Just then Xephos, Lomadia, Honeydew, Zoey, and Cecilia came into the courtyard, the king and general at the head of the group. Kim snapped to attention at the sight of them, dropping to one knee when the king stood before her. Zoey fell into step beside Rythian, his mother on his other side. Lomadia stood on her husband's left, Honeydew on his right. "Stand, soldier." The king ordered, and she did so. "Why have you come here and requested an audience with me?" He asked, and she said "There's been an attack on the Ciencian fort we captured, my liege. And it's not Lalna."

Silence for a fraction of a second.

"Who the hell is it then?!" Honeydew demanded. Kim only shook her head. "We're not sure yet, sir." Rythian felt Zoey grab his hand, and glanced at her to see the obvious displeasure and slight fear on her face at the topic of conversation. He squeezed her hand reassuringly, and looked back to the conversation in front of them. Xephos was frowning in thought, brow furrowed as he stared at the ground in front of him. Honeydew continued to carry on about why no one knew who was attacking the fort, and how could it not be Lalna. After a few more moments lost in thought, the king spoke again.

"I believe I have an idea who it may be." He said rather quietly, and all eyes turned on him. "The kingdom that shares a border with both Tekkitopia and Ciencia. Astron." He said, looking at his dwarven friend. "You mean you think King Sjin and his general Sips are attacking us? Why would they do that? We've been on friendly terms for years!" Honeydew exclaimed, and Rythian spoke up.

"King Sjin has plenty of motivation. Keep in mind, he won his independence from the kingdom beyond his by using more strategy than force. Now's an ideal time to take some new territory from both Ciencia and us. We'll be too busy fighting each other to worry about him." Xephos nodded. "We're also connected to the sea on two sides. That's something he doesn't have, and the ocean opens an entirely new inlet of wealth for any kingdom."

Lomadia then cut in. "I know Queen Minty quite well. She'll do up to anything to help her people, including get involved in a war to get her economy going again. Astron's been struggling recently." It appeared that they now knew the attackers, so Honeydew sent Kim off again to tell the soldiers in battle. In less than 5 minutes she was gone, and as the adults continued to discuss the war and what King Sjin's attack could mean, Zoey tugged Rythian back to his balcony, honestly not wanting to hear another word about the war.

She released his hand once they reached the balcony, and stepped back a meter or so, saying with great frustration "I absolutely hate war. It seems I can't go 5 minutes without hearing about it!" He sighed. "I know, Zoey, I know. Just think about something else for awhile. You'll calm down a little." She huffed out a sigh, and replied rather curtly "What am I supposed to think about, then?"

Rythian leaned against the railing beside her, the atmosphere sobering around them as he said "How about you think about whether you've decided if you love me or not?" Zoey glanced at her hands, which were resting loosely on the railing. She knew he would say this eventually, even though she'd hoped to avoid it. She already felt the need to run from her own awkwardness, and she hadn't even spoken yet.

"I…" She said uncertainly, hesitating as she was again put on the spot with this question. She wanted to say she was in love with him, but she wasn't absolutely sure… What would it take to make her absolutely sure? She'd kissed him, for goodness sake, and she was still unsure of herself!

The thing was, that kiss didn't even seem real to her. It had all happened so fast that it had just seemed like a dream. She hadn't known what else to do, so she'd done that. It seemed…. Right to her at the time, for whatever reason.

Rythian watched her, seeing the confusion and frustration in her eyes. He cautiously took her hands in his, fearing she would run away from him if he didn't. She was turned to face him, as he was turned to face her, and he studied her closely for a moment. She felt strangely uneasy under his gaze, and she squirmed slightly, shifting her feet and looking at their hands instead of his face. After staring intently at them for a few moments instead of speaking, she noticed something odd. Her hands seemed to fit almost perfectly into her guardians'.

She saw him take one hand away, and was confused as to why until she felt him tip her head up with his fingertips under her chin. She looked at him, frozen in place by the violet eyes she'd known for most of her life. His hand lingered on her face, fingertips running lightly down her jawline. At first contact she'd sucked in a sharp breath, and now found that it was caught in her throat as she felt a tingly sensation shoot through her that she didn't quite understand.

He watched her carefully, measuring her reactions to him and trying to decide what they meant and what to do about them. His one hand still held both of hers, and he let one fall back to her side while he intertwined his fingers with hers using the remaining hand each of them had. Their eyes remained locked, and he stepped closer to her, again watching closely for her reaction. She made no moves to get away from him. In fact the only movement she did make was to release the breath caught in her throat, and it didn't make a sound, even to his sensitive ears.

In fact, it didn't seem to him that anything other than the two of them made any sound. Or moved. His senses were solely trained on her. Nothing else mattered.

He reached up and pulled his mask down, letting her see the faint smile that played on his lips. He hoped to calm her, seeing the hand she wasn't using shaking slightly as it hung at her side. His hand brushed aside a clump of her hair that was trying to fall out of her ponytail, though it was really just an excuse for him to keep his hand where it was awhile longer.

Soon enough he was leaning towards her again, but he stopped himself maybe a centimeter or two away from having their noses touch again. She stared at him, rather shocked, if she was honest, that he'd come so close to her and had stopped. She could feel his breath on her lower face and neck, and see the questioning glint in his purple eyes. He was asking if he could come any closer.

She hesitated for a moment, trying to make up her mind, but her eyes must've said something other than "I'm thinking", because in no time he'd bent down and kissed her. His hand moved from her cheek to the back of her neck, and both of their eyes slid shut as they forgot the rest of the world around them.

Zoey found it slightly amusing how it felt like the other kiss she'd shared with him before hadn't even happened. She didn't even remember how it felt when he'd put his arms around her that time. This time she took in everything. The thumping of her heart, the tingly feeling through her whole body, and the tight feeling in her chest. The thing she liked the best, though, was how his scarred lips felt on hers.

When they pulled apart and looked at each other, a wide smile spread across Rythian's face, causing Zoey to blush slightly and smile too. He stepped back from her, releasing her hand and pulling his mask back up, still smiling wide. She giggled slightly, and the two were snapped back fully to reality to Lomadia and Cecilia calling their names from below them. The two raced off to find their mothers, leaving the balcony for the garden.

It was then that King Xephos stepped out from his hiding place near the balcony doorway inside. He had seen his daughter and her protector kiss, and he wasn't pleased. In fact, one could say he was infuriated. He would need to have a talk with Rythian about this. Soon.


	14. Chapter 13

The knock on Rythian's bedroom door came late in the evening, just after he had bid goodnight to Zoey. When he got up from his desk's chair and answered the door, he was surprised to find King Xephos standing there. "May I come in, Rythian? I must speak with you for a few moments." He said, and though he looked calm, the knight could tell there was an undertone to his voice and demeanor. "Sure, come on in…" He said, turning and motioning the hand that wasn't on his doorknob towards the wall. In response the piles of books and papers and whatever else was on his floor were pushed against the wall in slightly neater stacks.

The king strode into the room, and almost as soon as Rythian had shut his door, the atmosphere around them changed. Xephos, who refused the chair the young mage offered him, watched him as he took his own seat. He was about to ask why he wanted to speak with him when he was cut off by the monarch demanding "You and my little Zoeya. What's going on between the two of you?" The teen tried to act clueless. In truth, he was puzzled, but not for the reasons that he was pretending. "I'm not sure I follow you, sir…"

"Oh, don't play that game with me! I know you know what I'm talking about! Don't act stupid!" Xephos snapped, cutting the younger man off again. He took a deep breath and tried again, this time much calmer than before. "Everyone here has noticed that the two of you have been growing closer to each other as of late. I'd like to know if there's anything that you'd like to tell me that's been going on between you both that I should know about….?" Again, though he acted calmly, there was a rather threatening undertone to his voice.

Rythian found himself swallowing hard from his own nervousness. Where was he going with this? "Like what? I'm not quite sure I know what you want, Xephos." He said, trying to buy himself time to think of what to tell him. Again he was snapped at, but this time he wasn't expecting the words. "Oh for Notch's SAKE, Rythian! I SAW YOU KISS HER! I'm SURE you know how strictly FORBIDDEN that is! You had BETTER have a good explanation as to WHY you would do it!" He sat silent, looking the king in the eye. He might as well just let Xeph yell himself hoarse. He wouldn't accept the only explanation he had, and he knew that.

"Have you kissed her BEFORE, Rythian? Is there anything ELSE that's been going on here that I haven't known about?!" Xephos continued, looking like he was about to snap. He was getting louder by the second, and there was now no doubt in Rythian's mind that Zoeya had heard at least something going on in the room next to hers. If she'd heard his nightmare screaming, she had to have heard this. "Zoey will hear you, if you don't quiet down, sir." He said, and the king responded shortly "I don't particularly CARE if she hears me! Hell, I don't care if the ENTIRE FORTRESS hears me! I want you to ANSWER ME!"

The knight looked up at the king, silent for a moment before he warned quietly "You're not going to take this nicely." Xephos raised a questioning eyebrow anyways. "I'm in love with her." Rythian watched as the man who stood in front of him reacted to his words.

At first he just stood there, staring at the wall above his head. Then his expression morphed into one of refusal. Like this wasn't possible. After that it was realization. Like he knew he should've seen it coming. And then was the reaction that he had expected. Anger and confusion.

"WHAT?!" He demanded, and again the mage remained silent. He couldn't do anything to stop his ranting, nor his frustration. Xephos was Zoeya's father, and he clearly wasn't okay with a boy two years older than her and that lived with her loving her. Rythian could empathize. He understood. "What am I supposed to DO ABOUT THIS!" The king now asked, more to himself than anyone.

Still, a response came. This time from the fire-haired princess that had been standing in the dark doorway. "Maybe you shouldn't do anything, father." Apparently he hadn't noticed her presence until now -Rythian had awhile ago- because he spun around and exclaimed "Zoey!" She walked over to stand beside her guardian, and he looked at her rather sadly. His face said "Why do you have to get involved in these things?" She smiled slightly, and her expression replied "I can't sit by and watch you get chewed out ALL the time! Let me help!"

Xephos watched the two of them, and realized that his daughter was developing the same feelings for Rythian as he already had for her. Some scared part of him told him he couldn't let that happen. Zoey would get her heart broken. At least that was what be feared. "I cannot do nothing, Zoeya. What he did was forbidden in the strictest sense of the word." He lied, but the princess O.o "I am just as guilty as he is, father." Xephos froze. "W-What?" He questioned meekly, not quite wanting to know the answer. "I kissed him first, and just before he left to warn you about Lalna's attack. And I allowed him to kiss me the second time. He did nothing I didn't permit.." She admitted, and Rythian slipped his hand in hers when her father went red in the face. He was threatening, even though he would never intend to hurt her. He was at the point that his vision was probably red, he guessed, and almost anything could happen when someone was that angry.

"You!" He shouted at Rythian "YOU are going to the frontlines at DAWN. Do I make myself CLEAR?!" He only nodded in submission. Zoeya, however, protested immediately. "What?! No, dad, you can't! He's my bodyguard! He needs to keep me safe!" "HE CAN DO SO BY NOT LETTING ANYONE GET PAST THE CIENCIAN AND ASTRONIAN BORDERS!" He screamed, and for a moment she recoiled, afraid.

She looked up at Rythian, turning away from her father. He was looking at her, telling her with his eyes to stop. It wasn't worth it to fight with her dad over him. This only made her more determined,however. She turned back to Xephos, standing straight as she said defiantly "If he goes, so do I."

What followed after this was a series of shouts from him, telling her she wasn't setting foot outside the stronghold until the war was over, and that he'd lock her in her room if he had to. She insisted she was going with him. That there was no way in hell that she was going to let him leave. She tried to get in his face when she felt an arm block her path.

She looked up to see Rythian shake his head. "Stop it, Zoey. Just stop." He said. "But-" She tried, but he cut her off. "No. You're only making this harder than it already is." He turned to a satisfied-looking Xephos. "I'll be gone by breakfast tomorrow, sir." He nodded, replying simply "I'm glad you see reason, Rythian."

Just then Lomadia burst in. "What in the name of owls is going on up here? I heard yelling from the courtyard!" She demanded, but her husband only waved a dismissive hand at her. "It's nothing, darling. A trivial matter. It's been taken care of." He said easily, though as he took her arm and led her back to their room, she caught a glimpse of the look on Rythian and Zoey's faces. He was strangely sad, dread filling his eyes as he looked to the princess. She looked desperate, maybe even scared. The queen didn't know what had happened, but she could tell she didn't like it.

Zoey, meanwhile, was shaking her head frantically as Rythian tried to tell her what she didn't want to hear. "Rythian, stop! Stop saying that!" She exclaimed, clamping her hands over her ears. He sighed, gently taking them and holding them in his own. "Zoeya, listen to me. I'm leaving, and you're staying here. You're safe here, and I want it to stay that way. Understand?" She continued to shake her head. "No. No! I won't let you leave me here alone! You can't!" He hushed her and said quietly "You know your father won't let me stay. Not after what we both admitted to. He thinks he's protecting you."

"Well he's trying to protect me from the wrong person!" She whined, shaking free of his hands and hugging him instead. He sighed again and wrapped his arms around her. "What will I do while you're gone?" She asked, mumbling into his shirt. He shook his head. "I don't know." She knew she had to had to face the facts. He was leaving her in the morning, and she couldn't stop it. There, she'd done it. Rythian stroked her hair and tried to comfort her, and it wasn't until ten minutes had passed that she realized she was crying. 'Jeez,' she thought 'It's not even midnight yet and I'm already crying.'

He scooped her up into his arms and carefully carried her back to her own room, and when he sat her on the bed, her crying was reduced to sniffling. When he tried to leave, she begged "Rythian! Please stay in here! Just for tonight? I don't want to have to see you leave me until tomorrow…." He paused with his hand on the doorknob, looking at her out of the corner of his eye. She was laying on her bed, reaching for him with her left arm, the same expression on her face that Lomadia had seen earlier. He stood there for a few moments, debating how wise it would be for him to stay like she wanted him to… Finally, he decided that he might as well. He was leaving tomorrow anyways.

He sighed, and walked back over to her bed. Zoey sat up, and he sat beside her, allowing her to lay her head on his shoulder and wrap her arms around one of his. "Don't let me fall asleep. Please?" She asked. "I won't." He replied.

"Promise?"

"Promise."

And so, the night dragged on, and both of them refused to sleep a wink. By 1 AM, Zoey was curled up on Rythian's lap, his arms wrapped around her and his head resting on hers. He stared out the glass doors to the balcony, watching the light level outside. He kept thinking about who would keep her safe while he was out on the battlefield. Maybe he could convince Xephos to have Tee help protect her while he was gone? He'd have to see. His mask was down by this time, and he felt her shift so she could look up at him.

She put her hand on his scarred cheek, still looking quite sad. He set his hand on hers. He hated seeing her sad like this. He outright couldn't stand it. He tried to get her to think of other things than his leaving tomorrow. "Do you remember back when we were kids? When you insisted on climbing up to the top of the outer walls of the castle and almost fell off them?" He asked, and she nodded, keeping her eyes on him as his eyes focused on somewhere else.

"You were jumping around like it was the safest place in the world. And when you tripped, you started falling backwards, and I freaked out.." He said, and she smiled slightly. "You grabbed me by my arm and pulled me back from the edge before I could fall, though, remember? You scolded me for the rest of the week about that." She said, and he scoffed. "You scared me to death! What was I supposed to do, applaud you?" He asked sarcastically, and she giggled. "No, I suppose you're right…." She admitted, and he chuckled quietly for the first time in hours.

She smiled at him, and he hugged her closer to his chest, closing his eyes and gently kissing her forehead. Zoeya giggled again, and he pulled back and gave her a questioning look. She giggled some more before replying simply "That's the third time you've done that! And it makes me wanna giggle, so I did!" At this he laughs, poking her stomach playfully and saying "You're a strange girl, you know that?"

"Is that a good thing?" She asked, and he smiled again. "Of course, Zoey. It makes you different from everyone else." She looked at him skeptically again. "And is THAT a good thing?" Rythian rolled his eyes, but replied gently and honestly. "Yes, it is. I wouldn't love just some other girl. I love YOU, and it's because you're different." They both stayed silent for awhile before he added "Besides, you make things a lot more interesting…" She shoved his arm playfully in response, smiling.

More hours passed, the pair recalling memories that the two of them had shared over the years, trying to forget about why neither of them would sleep, or why they dreaded the morning. Eventually, though, the subject came back around. At about 4 AM, she asked distantly "Rythian, what will your mom do when she finds out that you're going into battle like your dad did? What will my mom do, do you think?" He sighed, replying quietly "Probably the same thing she did when my dad used to leave… You'll see what I mean in the morning, I suppose. As for Lomadia…. My guess is that she won't be very pleased with Xephos."

Zoey thought on this for a moment or two before she asked another question. "Do you think we can send letters back and forth? Maybe using your bird?" In response he nodded. "Probably, though I'm not sure how well your father will agree with it." She rolled her eyes at this. "I'm not sure 'how well he'd agree' with you being in my room with me either, but that doesn't seem to stop us right now, now does it?" He smiled wryly at her, scoffing slightly. "No, I suppose not…" He admitted, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. Silence for awhile.

"…Will you have nightmares while you're gone?" She asked, and he answered that it was very likely. She frowned. "Isn't there some spell you can use to keep them away?"

"No, otherwise I'd already be using it. I've tried a few things over the years, but none of them have really worked. I know I can drink a potion to help me sleep sooner and keep me from screaming while I do, but…." He answered, trailing off at the end. She gave him a questioning look, sitting up slightly. "But what?" He sighed, admitting "It's hard as hell to wake me up… I don't like the feeling that if something happened I wouldn't be able to wake up. And not all the dreams I have start out bad. When I drink that potion I can't remember the dreams I've just had. A lot of times the nightmares start out as a dream about old memories with my dad, or with you, or any number of good things…. And by the end someone dies, or gets hurt, or something awful like that."

Zoey frowned. "Just don't do anything drastic, okay? I don't want to hear that you've gone and messed up some sleep spell or something." She said rather jokingly, causing him to retort rather defensively "I will NOT 'mess up some sleep spell'. It doesn't work like that. Besides, IF I ever would've done something like that, it would've been a LONG time ago." She giggled, poking his chest and saying "Well no need to get so sassy, Mister I'm-too-good-to-make-mistakes! I'm just teasing!" He sighed again, rolling his eyes but smiling at the same time. "I'm not 'sassy'…" He mumbled, pouting. Again she giggled, and the next few hours passed.

When Rythian looked out the balcony doors next, the smile he'd been wearing was wiped from his face almost instantly. The princess followed his gaze, at first planning on teasing him. When she saw the sun was begging to peek over the walls of the stronghold, however, her smile disappeared as well. She looked to her guardian, seeing his hand reaching for his mask and a look of the same sad acceptance he'd had the night before seeping into his features.

She reached up and stopped his hand, entwining their fingers before she sat further up and kissed him. When they pulled back from each other, she hugged him, and when he returned her embrace she whispered in his ear "I love you, Rythian." She could tell w his voice he smiled as he whispered back "I love you too, Zoey."

He let her go and she did likewise, and as they looked out the glass doors at the sunrise, Rythian knew that the next few weeks would be hard on both of them… And who knew how long it would take for things to get better?


	15. Chapter 14

Rythian stepped into the morning sunlight with clear reluctance. Fog hung in the air, and the chill made Zoey -who stood behind him, clutching his hand in hers- shiver. An hour or so had passed since dawn, and both of them were fully prepared for the day. Physically, anyway. The only difference in that sense that was different about this morning was the weight of the alchemical bag at the mage's side, heavier with the added bulk of his clothing and extra amulets and other magical items. He'd spent a few minutes making potions that he thought would be useful. He carried his journal and a few books he hadn't read yet as well, his second katar tucked in the magical bag as well.

It took him a moment to adjust to the light level, but he walked to the stables to retrieve Ghost alright. It took awhile to get the horse saddled and prepared for the journey to the fort in Ciencia, and by the time he led the still sleepy animal out into the courtyard, he found nearly everyone was standing in a loose semi-circle in the center of it. His mother, the king and queen, Ravs, and Honeydew.

Zoey didn't let go of his hand, even after her father shot her a warning glare that told her to. Rythian nudged her, though, and when she looked up at him, he said so that only she could hear "Don't get yourself in more trouble because of me. Go stand by your mom." She wanted to argue with him, but Xephos cleared his throat impatiently, giving her another warning look. She glared at him, but released her guardian and went to her mother. Only because Ryth had asked her to.

He turned to the king, who promptly handed him a letter and stated "Give this to the general in charge of the fort. He'll give you further instructions as to what you'll be doing." The knight took the letter, his eyes cold and his expression unreadable. "Is this really necessary, Xeph? I don't think th-" Lomadia started, only to be cut off by her husband. "For Notch's sake, Lomadia!" He snapped, "How many times have I told you! The soldiers at the fortress are in dire need of reinforcements, and I can't spare as many men as they need. Rythian is just as good as a group of ten soldiers, as I'm sure you'll agree. I'm sending he and the 16th Regiment down to help. He and the regiment will go where they're needed, and when they aren't needed, he'll be back here." The queen sighed, but nodded, turning to Rythian and wishing him luck. He nodded, accepting her luck and the always-reassuring smile she gave him.

Ravs was next, Rythian turning to him after a half-drunken coughing fit was heard from the cook. He smiled half-heartedly as he handed the taller man a sack of food and drink, telling him that that should last him until he got to Ciencia. "There's a surprise at the bottom of the bag, too. For later." He said with a slight laugh and a barely noticeable wink. The mage managed a small smile, understanding just what his old friend meant by "surprise".

Honeydew scoffed slightly, bringing Rythian's attention to him. The dwarf spoke in the most official tone he could manage, but seeing as he wasn't a very serious man, it was more funny than anything. "I hope you'll be fair to the soldiers. Not all of them are quite at your level, you know. Don't let them give you a hard time, though, either. They can be a rough bunch if they wanna be." The teenager held his laughter at the general's ridiculous voice, and nodded a thank-you for the advice.

He looked at his mother, who stood beside Lomadia in a kind of silent panic. She looked at her son with the same muted fear he'd seen on her face when his father went into a battle. He'd only seen it a couple times, but he'd seen it enough to know what it was. He saw that she held a familiar sword in her tight grip, one that he remembered pulling out of the secret grotto near the Castle of Tekkitopia. The sword was still in the same enchanted sheath he had seen it in every time. It used to be his father's sword. He'd always had it on his belt, right up to the day he had died.

Rythian looked from the sword to his mother and back again before she spoke. "He wanted you to have this," she said quietly. "It was his father's sword, and he wanted to pass it to you. It kills Endermen quicker than anything else, and I figure you'll get better use out of it now more than ever…" She handed him the blade, the Enderpearl on it's hilt still visible over the edge of the scabbard. He took it reluctantly, staring at it for a moment before putting it in his alchemical bag. Cecilia then hugged her son as tightly as she could, letting him go only after he nudged her off of him as gently as he could. He felt bad for causing the memories of his father that he knew she saw in her mental eye, but there was nothing he could do. He had to leave..

With that, he turned to Zoey.

This wasn't the first time he'd tried to say goodbye to her, -not even close- but she reacted the same way. The young princess looked at him for a minute, her eyes slowly filling with tears. "Please don't leave!" She said quietly, nearly knocking him over with a hug. He steadied himself before returning the hug, barely hearing her mumble "I don't want you to go" into his shirt. He set his head on her shoulder and whispered "I don't want to go. But I have to, and you know that." She pulled back from him, wiping the tears frantically from her cheeks as she nodded grimly.

Rythian pulled his lifestone from his pocket and handed it to her, saying "Keep this for me. It's on already, so you don't have to worry about that." She shook her head. "No, you need it. Keep it." She said, trying to give it back to him. "I want you to have it, since I won't be here to keep you from getting hurt. I've got a second one in the bag anyways." He assured her, and after a moment of thought, she gave in and put the stone in her pocket. She hugged him again, this time for much longer and without saying a word.

It wasn't that long, though, until Xephos cleared his throat again, giving Rythian an impatient look. He got the message. "I have to go." He whispered in Zoey's ear, and she whispered "I know…" before releasing him again. She then went and stood by her mother again, watching silently as he climbed onto Ghost's back. He looked directly at his mother just before he rode off, giving her a look that gave a very clear message. "Keep her safe."

Cecilia only nodded, watching with the rest of the assembled group as he rode off, heading to the battlements Ciencia. When he vanished from view, one by one everyone left the courtyard. The last to go was Zoey. She stood staring at the spot where she had seen him last, half hoping that he would reappear and come back for her. Tell her that the two of them would run away if they had to, so long as they were together.

It was a silly hope, she acknowledged that. But she still wanted it to happen. He hadn't even been gone more than 15 minutes and she already missed him…. She sighed, turning and walking towards her room. She might as well find something to do. Maybe she should ask her dad about Tee. Yes, that sounded like a decent enough plan… Decent enough to keep her mind off of all the dangers Rythian would be charging into soon enough.

The man himself, meanwhile, was at the edge of the forest where his father had died, checking over his supplies one more time before he got too far away. Everything seemed to be there. Infernal Armour, Potions, Extra Klein Stars, his Transmutation Tablet… Wait a second. Where was the extra Lifestone? He cursed under his breath, searching again and again for the stone, but not finding it. He gave up looking with a growl after two more searches. Where had he put the damned thing? He could've sworn he had put it in the bag with the potions…

Then it hit him. Zoey had asked him whether a Splash Potion of Harm was safe to drink, and he quite literally dropped what he was doing and stopped her from testing her theory. The Lifestone was probably laying under his desk, where it had rolled when he'd dropped it. "Well," he said to himself "I guess I'll just have to get injured like a normal person. If I'm really hurt I can just use a bit of my own power, anyways." As long as his armour stayed intact, he would be just fine against any normal soldier.

With that he got back into Ghost's saddle and followed the winding path further into the forest. His horse stopped abruptly next to the clearing where Rythian had received his scars, and wouldn't move anywhere but the other direction. Frustrated and confused, he dismounted, drawing his katar and looping his father's sword on his belt as he entered the clearing. "Probably bandits, looking to ambush me" he thought. But he didn't find bandits. He found an extremely pale woman with long brown hair and icy blue eyes, dressed in the blackish-grey clothes of a commoner.

He stared her down for a moment, seeing a small black dagger clutched tightly in her left hand. He could feel magic beginning to form into a spell in her right. She had a rather large and deep gash on her right arm as well, and there was obvious fear in her eyes. Rythian sheathed his weapons and held his hands up a little, showing that he wasn't going to hurt her. She put away her dagger, and the magic energy disappeared from her hand. "Who are you?" She asked shakily, pressing her back further into the tree she was propped against as he walked closer.

"My name's Rythian. I'm not going to hurt you. In fact I was planning on healing you, if you'd let me…" He said cautiously, approaching her slower. The girl watched him for a moment before relaxing her muscles and replying bluntly "Well if you're going to heal me you'd best do it before I lose any more blood. I'm barely holding onto consciousness as it is." He was beside her now, examining the wound as closely as he could while keeping the blood flow as low as possible.

"What attacked you? Whatever it was it either had a really sharp weapon or claws…" At this the girl scoffed. "No, they hit me with pillows." She said sarcastically, causing a small chuckle from beside her. "I would've healed this myself, but I just don't think I've got enough energy left after fighting all those Endermen…"

Rythian was surprised slightly, and she noticed. "What, you didn't expect me to be fighting Endermen? I look too frail and all that'?" She asked incredulously, causing him to shake his head. "No, no… You just didn't come off as someone to get injured by them. They're not nearly as intelligent as they should be." He said, a strange hatred of the creatures seeping into his voice. There was silence for awhile while he healed her wound.

"That dagger couldn't have been the only weapon you had. Endermen don't normally like to fight that close." The girl scoffed, taking the dagger out and throwing it at the tree directly across from her as he watched her. Rythian felt a surge of magic between the girl and the dagger, and it dislodged itself from the tree and flew back into her hand. She looked at him, and he wondered why he hadn't asked this strange girl her name, or why she was in the woods fighting Endermen.

She stood as he opened his mouth, cutting him off before he could speak. "Well, I guess I should go now. I have to find my friend. Thanks for healing me, Rythian." She said, turning away to leave. He stood. "Wait. What's your name? I never asked." He said quickly as she stood at the edge of the clearing, her back turned. Her hair was even more curly than Zoey's, he saw in the sunlight. Her eyes were an odd teal color as she turned to look over her shoulder with a little smirk. "Anastassia Blackblood. Don't wear it out." She said, stepping into the trees and vanishing.

Rythian stood there for a moment, puzzled and intrigued. Anastassia Blackblood…. Where had he heard that name before? He was sure he'd read it somewhere, but exactly where he couldn't seem to remember. If she could use magic like that, why was she dressed as a farmer girl? Maybe she was running from someone or something… He shook his head. It probably wasn't important anyways. This Anastassia could go on with her life, and he would go on with his.

Though, as he rode away on a now compliant Ghost, he half hoped to see the strange girl again. She had to be around his age, if not a little younger, and she was obviously a competent mage if she could make a dagger to do her bidding. She was certainly intriguing, this Anastassia.

He pushed his thoughts of her to the back of his mind, focusing on the path ahead of him and the sounds around him. His faithful grey horse was galloping as fast as he could go, his master's anxiety seeping into his mindset. Rythian had always been a firm believer that animals weren't nearly as dumb as everyone thought them to be, and this was further proof of that. The horse was, however, restricted to mortal needs such as food and water, so around noon the knight stopped near a small pond at the edge of the woods, allowing his steed to graze and drink as it felt it needed to.

He sat down and looked through the sack of food Ravs had given him, feeling around for an apple for his animal companion. Instead he felt the cold metal of the flask of whiskey at the bottom of the bag, and wrapped his hand around it. It wasn't even that he wanted to drink this early in the day, or that he particularly craved the somehow comforting numb feeling that drunkenness provided. He was just lonely, and the flask was a connection to his old friend.

Rythian sat for a few minutes, staring at the surface of the water and subconsciously rubbing his hands and turning his rings, thinking about how he'd received the small scars that scraped across his knuckles. The night not so long ago that he'd told Zoey he loved her, and when she hadn't responded, he went into a rage. He'd run off into the forest, destroying anything that got in his way, and then punched, kicked, and roared his way into numbness.

Then Zoey came to look for him, nearly getting herself killed doing so, and tried to help him. He remembered how she stood in front of him and wouldn't let him walk further until he listened to her. She'd forced her way into his arms and touched his scars. His hideous, revolting scars that somehow she accepted as a part of him. Even now he felt the places where he knew the flesh was almost nonexistent. Just a few layers of taught, shredded skin. His stomach churned as he remembered the intense flashes of pain as the Ciencian soldiers' rings cut his face all those years ago.

He shuddered, pushing the memories aside and resuming his journey to the fort. He rode for most of the day, reaching the fort a little ways into Ciencia at sunset. He halted Ghost in front of the gates, seeing the purple blue and red flag of Tekkitopia still flying on the flag pole. The gold symbol of the kingdom shone proudly in the sunlight, a torch with it's flame ablaze, crossed in an X shape with a sword. The torch was surrounded in red, the sword with purple. A dark blue like the night sky covered the rest of the space, making the golden symbol contrast even more.

Rythian had seen the flag many times, but only now did he make the connection most would've thought was obvious. The bright light of the torch casting a shadow over the sword…. It almost reminded him of he and Zoeya.

A shadow and a flame.


	16. Chapter 15

Rythian had arrived at the fort a few hours before the 16th Regiment did, and had given his letter from Xephos to the general in charge: a man named Ridgedog. It seemed to please him that the king had sent the princess' own bodyguard to assist in the defense of the foreign encampment, and possibly the capture of a few others. He was told to find a place to sleep and to eat a little before they worked him into the patrol schedule.

It had been a week or so since then, and the guardian now sat in his room, which he shared with one other person, a boy a year younger than him who went by the name Panda. He had messy light brown hair, and an eyepatch over one of his blue eyes. There had been an accident when he was younger, he explained, that had cost him the eye. Had something to do with Nilesy, who came along with the 16th Regiment. Or at least he thought so…

Rythian didn't really pay that much attention. Hell, he hadn't paid much attention to anything since he'd gotten here. He hadn't slept, either, or eaten as much as he admittedly should have been. Right now he was writing a letter to send to Zoey, this being his 4th attempt. He'd scrapped his other attempts because either they had been too long or he'd been rambling the whole time. This time he started out differently, hoping that he would like this attempt better. He mumbled the words to himself as he wrote.

"Zoey,

Are you doing okay? I heard from a few soldiers here that Tee was heading towards your location, so that must mean he'll be with you when you get this. Tell him hello for me. I hope he'll be able to keep you company well enough. Just remember that he's mute, so he can only answer yes or no questions. Try not to confuse him too much, eh?

How's everyone else holding up? If I remember right, your dad should be heading back to the castle tomorrow. Don't be too mad at him for sending me off, either. He thinks he's helping you by keeping me away. He's done what he has for you, don't forget that.

It isn't too bad here, even though I have to share a room. The guy isn't mean or anything, he's just a bit too loud sometimes. I requested a room away from anyone else's so my nightmares wouldn't be too much of an issue, and he requested the same because he has a ruined eye and he takes his eyepatch off at night. I explained to him that I have vivid nightmares sometimes, and he told me he'd wake me if I start screaming. I've got the evening patrol of the walls, though, so Panda's usually fast asleep by the time I get back. He's a heavy sleeper, too, so I guess I should be okay.

Reply when you can, okay?

Rythian"

He looked it over again, making sure it wasn't too long and that it made sense. After a moment or two of debate, he finally decided to just send it. He was NOT going to sit there and write the damn thing over again. Sighing, he rolled it up and grabbed a string from inside his bag, tying it tightly around the letter. He went outside to the courtyard, which was nearly empty since it was only a little bit after dawn. He whistled for his raven, putting magic into it so that the bird was sure to hear him.

After a moment the bird squawked and landed on his forearm, and Rythian tied the string to Corvo's leg and told him where to go before releasing him to fly back up north to Zoey. He watched until the bird was out of sight over the grey stone of the fortress' three story walls before turning around and heading back inside.

The raven, meanwhile, was soaring over the forest in between his master and the princess, using the slight breeze to his advantage. It didn't take long for him to reach his destination, letting out another squawk as he landed just outside the glass doors of Zoeya's bedroom. He squawked again when the red-head glanced towards the movement.

Gasping, she ran to the doors and opened them, kneeling next to the black bird and quickly untying the letter around his ankle. Tee stood on the other side of the doors, watching as she read the piece of paper silently to herself. After a moment she looked to him, smiling as she said "Rythian says hello, Tee." In response the mute waved, causing her smile to widen. She stood, grabbing a bit of bread off of her bedside table and feeding it to the bird before going to her own desk and grabbing a piece of paper, writing a reply to her guardian's letter. She wrote:

Rythian,

It's about time you wrote me! I'm doing as good as I can be, I suppose. Tee's standing behind me right now, he says hi too. He's been here since last night, and he's been rather good at keeping me occupied since. Your mom's helped him a little, too. She's been teaching me a lot about flowers and stuff! She even told me that mushrooms grow in the Nether! I had no idea they did that!

My mom hasn't been talking to my dad since you left. I think she's mad at him for sending you away. The day you left I heard them arguing in the parlor. Apparently she knew that the reason dad gave in front of everyone wasn't the real reason you had to leave. She wants you to come back almost as much as I do. Ravs has been out of it, too, always drinking with Honeydew and forgetting to pull the food off the stove on time. Needless to say that our food's been a bit singed the last few days.

I have to admit, Rythian, I've had nightmares the last few nights. I go over to your room and sleep there, I hope that's okay. I can't go back to sleep otherwise. If yours get too bad, maybe you should drink that potion you talked about. I don't want you to lose too much sleep, even if you can't remember the dreams. I'd rather have you sleep better than remember everything you dream about.

I hope you can come back soon!

Zoeya

She stared at the letter before tying it around Corvo's leg and sending him off. Tee tapped her on the shoulder, giving her a questioning look and pointing to the quickly shrinking form of the black bird in the sky. "Oh that's right!" Zoey exclaimed, "You didn't know Rythian had a pet raven!" The black-haired boy nodded. "That's his messenger bird. My mom and I helped train him. His name's Corvo." She explained, and he nodded, showing he understood. Silence for awhile.

She sighed, getting up and going out to her balcony, he following her closely. She leaned on the railing, watching the pinks and oranges in the sky turn to blues as the morning drug on. It was chilly out, but she didn't really care. She liked listening to the birds waking up in the forest, because they all sounded so happy. Their chirps and whistles always made her cheery, and cheer was something she was seriously lacking the past few days.

She never showed it when she was around other people, though. Occasionally Teep would catch a frown creep onto her face for a fraction of a second, but that was the most sadness he'd seen her display. When she was alone, however, things were different.

She'd had nightmares the past few nights, most of them including Rythian dying, or her family, or both. And she always had to watch. A lot of times she would wake up and the first thing she'd think of was "This must be what he feels like." She'd never been very good at putting herself in other people's shoes, but she sympathized well enough with him. Now she didn't have to do either. She knew what it was like now, and frankly she wished she didn't.

She'd only started sleeping in his bed 2 or 3 days ago. The previous nights she'd fall back asleep only to wake up an hour later from the same thing. When she slept in his bed, though, they stayed away. She felt like he was with her sometimes, even if he was all the way in Ciencia. She'd never noticed how he'd smelled before she'd slept there, either. It was like vanilla and cinnamon, and another scent she could only identify as magic. She found it extremely calming, as silly as that sounded.

Teep tapped her on the shoulder again, and she realized she was staring off into space. "Sorry, I was just… thinking." She said as cheerfully as she could, turning back around to face him and smiling. "So, what are we going to do today, Tee? Something fun, I hope!" The mute smiled and produced a lever from his pocket. Zoeya smiled, too.

Ravs had found Tee in the dining room his first day here, and he'd been absent-mindedly flicking a lever -the same lever he held now- back and forth. After awhile, Ravs just went over and flicked the lever too, thus creating an odd sort of game the two played often. Zoey had begun to call it "The Lever Game". The three of them had been playing it all week.

Tee followed her downstairs to the dining room, once there setting the lever on the table while Zoey got Ravs out of the kitchen. Soon enough, the two men were flicking a lever and punching each other in the arm to try and prevent the other form winning the match. The princess watched excitedly, and after a match or two a laugh was heard from the main doorway. Cecilia, Lomadia, Honeydew, and even Xephos stood there. The laugh had escaped from the queen's lips, and both her and Rythian's mother stood with wide -if ever puzzled- smiles on their faces.

"What the heck is going on in here?" The latter asked, causing a slight giggle from Zoey before a response came. "The Lever Game!" She said simply, causing a still oblivious expression to stay on everyone's faces. She explained to them the rules and object of the rather nonsensical game, and before long Honeydew and Xephos were facing off alongside Tee and Ravs. The three women stood and watched them, amused and entertained.

Rythian, meanwhile, was sitting in his room, Panda lecturing him about how inattentive he was. "I could sit here and talk about the most interesting thing in the world and you'd just sit there and stare off, wouldn't you?" The younger man asked, causing a small scoff from his conversational partner. "That depends on what it is, Panda." A roll of his eye was the only response for awhile.

"Alright, Rythian, seriously. I've seen you when you're with the princess at all those public events. You never miss anything! A pin could drop and you'd notice. So why don't you notice when a plate of food is put right in front of your face?" He was silent for a few moments, then a quiet warning. "I swear to the Void if you tell anyone about this I will cut your tongue off." Panda only nodded and crossed his heart. With a sigh, the guardian told him the truth.

"It's Zoeya. I… She…. She gives me a reason to live. Protecting her is and has been my purpose, and now that I'm without her… I honestly don't know what to do with myself. I don't feel whole. I go through the motions of living, but my mind's not here. It's like I'm stuck in the state I was in when my dad first died, and it's incredibly frustrating." Rythian admitted, his voice actually changing from the monotone he had been using for the last week. It surprised his roommate, but that was the only part of what he said that shocked him. Panda actually laughed for the smallest fraction of a second.

"Well, bloody hell. Anyone who isn't blind knows there's something to the way you cling to her like a second shadow! I would've thought it was something a bit more subtle than this, but frankly it's not that groundbreaking." Rythian was puzzled, and maybe the slightest bit frightened. "What do you mean?" Panda rolled his eye again. "Oh come on, Rythian, really? It's so glaringly obvious that you're absolutely smitten with her, just by the way you talk about her! You actually put an emotion other than frustration into your voice for once!" The mage sat quiet for a second, not quite sure how to respond to that.

Suddenly, another knight burst into the room, shouting hastily at the two of them that the fort was being attacked by Sjin again. Not a second later the bangs of cannons both on the fortress' walls and on the ground below shook the room around them. Immediately Panda and Rythian jumped up, the latter not even bothering with his armour, and ran for the nearest staircase to the walls, weapons drawn.

When they saw the battle below them, the mage's eyes locked on two men in the back of the ranks, one dressed rather lavishly in gold, the other in much simpler silver. Sips and Sjin. He subconsciously growled under his breath as he drew his bow to shoot down soldiers that were trying to get ladders up to the walls to breach them, nearly taking a few arrows himself a couple times. His reflexes were quick, though, and his eyes quicker.

He heard Ridgedog screaming from on top of one of the barracks' towers for the archers to shoot, the cannons to be fired quicker, for ground forces to be sent down there. Rythian heard those last words and abandoned his shooting position to run for the gates before the general noticed. Unfortunately, he noticed anyway. "Rythian, where the hell do you think you're going without armor on?!" He demanded, and the younger man growled in frustration as he turned to face the man in the brown and gold coat.

"If I put armour on will you let me fight on the ground like I was trained to?" He demanded quickly, another round of booms sounding as artillery was fired again. "You're one of the best shots here, I am NOT letting you-" he began, but was distracted by Kim, -who had seen Rythian's predicament- who asked if someone should send word to the king of the attack, glancing purposefully at the masked knight.

Ridge shook his head. "Not him. He stays. You go." He orders, and as Kim passes she gives Rythian an apologetic look. Like saying "Sorry, I tried." The general was about to order him back to the shooting post, but he had already teleported away, and was standing with both katars drawn at the opposite end of the wall, ready to jump down into the battle. He heard Ridgedog's scream of frustration, but he jumped down anyways, unharmed only because of his flying ring.

He landed behind the makeshift wooden blockades the soldiers had set up only the previous day, where quite a few of Tekkitopia's soldiers were know warding off the Astronians as best they could. Without hesitation, he jumped into the battle, throwing a dagger into the arm of an aggressor about to execute a Tekkitopian and then taking the man by his injured arm and throwing him back into the wall behind him, driving his katar into his chest through the flimsy iron armour he wore. He died instantly, and his body fell to the ground with a dull thud.

An arrow flew past Rythian's left ear, sticking in between two stones in the massive wall, and he followed the trajectory to an archer not 5 meters from him. He shot a quick burst of electricity at him, causing him to keel over as the powerful current ran through his body. He turned towards the sound of an enemy battle cry somewhere to his right to see a man with a two-handed broadsword charging through the ranks towards him, face alight with rage. The mage brought his katars up in a defensive X just as the man swung the sword, and the two of them struggled for the upper hand, testing each others' strength.

Finally, Rythian got tired of the contest, and kicked the man in the chest, sending him stumbling back a ways before effectively slicing his throat. Surprise filled the man's red-brown eyes, and then they glazed over as he too fell to the floor with a thump. The knight barely had time to catch a breath before he was under attack again, and he dispatched of his foes as quickly and as efficiently as possible, defeating 3 or 4 more soldiers before realizing he was one of only 5 Tekkitopians left standing behind the barracks.

An arrow flew from above him and hit a soldier he hadn't even seen coming at him in the chest, and he heard the distant shout of Panda above him as he said "JUST KEEP GOING, RYTHIAN! RIDGEDOG IS SENDING DOWN REINFORCEMENTS!"

Preparing himself, he threw himself back into the fray, in the back of his mind wondering why he felt slightly dizzy. He shoved the thoughts away, and focused on the advancing soldiers ahead of him. He threw a knife into the throat of one, then turned and shot a fireball at another, driving his katars into any who got too close. One of his allies fought her way to him, standing back to back with him and helping him keep close foes at bay while he tried to shoot down others that had tried to put up ladders again.

The reinforcements arrived within 2 minutes, pushing the line of aggressors back far enough that they were actually beginning to get the upper hand. Rythian fell back, resting against the wall as he tried to catch his breath. He was so unusually tired, but he assumed it was from the amount of magic he'd been using and the physical exertion.

That was, until he looked down at his stomach.

It looked like someone had clipped him with an arrow or a sword slash, seeing as the cut wasn't deep, but it still bled profusely. Immediately he tried healing himself, but his vision swam even worse than it already was, and he grumbled under his breath. He was going to pass out if he healed like that, and he was going to pass out if he sat here much longer losing blood like this…

He cursed at himself for his carelessness. He shouldn't have forgotten his life stone…. Hell, he should've put some damn armour on before he came down here! What the hell had he been thinking?! He could just imagine Zoey's face if she saw him like this. Or heard of it, for that matter.

It was that thought, the one of Zoey, that prompted him to rip the bottom half of his already bloodied shirt and tie it tightly around the wound, ceasing the bleeding. He stood, and when his head stopped spinning, he drew both katars again and ran back into the battle.

Now, you may be thinking; "Why would he do that? He's wounded, he shouldn't be fighting more!" Rythian knew that, but in his mind, what Xephos had said the night before he left was true.

He may not have been with Zoeya right then, to protect her like he normally would… But that didn't mean his fight here was for nothing. He could help keep her safe, even with their distance.

All he had to do was keep fighting.


	17. Chapter 16

Zoey and Tee were in the courtyard when Kim came riding in on her horse again, and as soon as the princess laid eyes on the horse, she shoved her mute friend towards the main hall, saying hastily "Find my dad. Bring him here, quickly!" As he left, Kim hopped off her horse, showing that she was actually shorter than Zoeya. "Another attack?" The latter asked in a displeased voice, frowning slightly. The soldier nodded grimly, bowing slightly and replying "I'm afraid so, princess…"

"Is Rythian…?" She asked, trailing off at the end of her question. Kim understood what she was saying. "Last I saw he was heading into the melee fighting." Zoey bit her lip. "Was he wearing armor?" The other woman frowned slightly, and opened her mouth to speak when a demanding voice cut her off.

"What the hell is going on NOW!" King Xephos shouted, and upon seeing the black-haired woman next to her horse, he frowned. "Not again…." he grumbled, and again, Kim bowed and nodded. "I wish I could bring better news, my liege." Honeydew spoke up, he and the others having followed the king there. "How many of them and from which direction?"

"A few hundred Astronians, sir. Coming from the West." She replied curtly, turning to the dwarf. He growled "How many is a few hundred! Be more specific!" She thought for a moment before responding "2 or 3 hundred, General. No more than 4." He fell silent, stroking his beard slightly as he thought.

"How many are at the fort again?" Xephos asked his friend, who said without hesitation "257, thought Rythian probably counts for a few more considering his skill…. Either way, we're a bit outnumbered if her estimate is correct." The king frowned deeper, saying "Damn Sjin to oblivion! He's coming in from the opposite direction of his kingdom, trying to surprise us. I guarantee there's more fortifications on the East wall rather than the West. He also knows that we'll put more blockades up to the South, where Lalna's most likely to attack from…. He's trying to get through the weakest links, last time he attacked the North wall and this time he attacks the West."

He turned to Kim. "Tell Ridgedog to fortify the walls -at all sides- stronger when this is over with. If you get back and we're losing more men too quickly… Tell him to call a retreat. My orders." He said sternly, and she nodded, climbing back onto her horse and speeding off without another word. Zoey watched her leave, flying up to watch her until she vanished over the hills. She had frowned when she'd asked if Rythian was wearing armour. That was never a good sign.

She hoped he was okay, whatever he was doing. She didn't know if she could take losing him….. "No, stop that." she told herself "That kind of thinking won't help anything. He'll be alright…. I know that better than anyone." She looked to her hands and then back at the horizon, muttering "I hope."

Rythian was, in fact, still in one piece, the battle still raging at the fort. He was currently fighting a woman who double-wielded knives. She was obviously not an Astronian soldier. Not only her weapons were strikingly different, but she was wearing all black clothing, probably hiding Dark Matter armour. She wore a black hood that hid her face, -probably with the help of a glamour spell- and she had a pentagram-looking tattoo on her pale right hand.

He had summed up that she was an assassin of some kind. She hadn't gone after anyone else in the battle, just gone straight for him. She was a potent fighter, and her fighting style was similar to Rythians', the double-blades and obvious talent for magic. She remained silent during their squabble, not making a sound other than the odd grunt when she had trouble dodging, or when she and he grappled for the upper hand.

He chose to stay silent as well, trying to concentrate on countering, attacking, blocking, and dodging. To be honest, it was growing harder for him to keep up, the wound on his side still bleeding slightly, and quite a few other burn marks or arrow nicks caused his body to want to slow down. He had managed to stun her a few times, but that was all he'd managed.

Suddenly she jumped back, and he felt her staring at his eyes. They must have been glowing. He took the opportunity and attacked, landing a hit on her. It was actually rather damaging, leaving a larger gash on her side than his, and she stumbled back further. She fell, landing on her back, and her daggers flew from her hands, skidding across the dirt. She tried to summon a spell to her hands, but to no avail. He was about to injure her further when suddenly another assassin appeared, this one a boy.

He stood at the same eye-level as Rythian, with a similar tanned skin tone and the same mark on his hand as the girl. He wore similar clothes as well, a hood covering his face and the black outfit. He blocked Rythians' attack with a black sabre-like sword, shouting "Stay away from her!" and pushing the knight back. His hold on the glamour spell slipped, and the shadows around his mouth vanished, revealing bared teeth growling at him.

He continued to shove him towards the wall, the girl clambering to her feet behind him. Though he tried his best, Rythian wasn't strong enough to push his attacker off, not in his current state. He felt his back press against the wall, and time seemed to slow. The assassin took his sword off Rythians'. The battle itself had moved on, every soldier and knight was focusing their attention closer to Sjin and Sips. The assassin drew his sword back, and without hesitation, shoved it through Rythians' stomach.

Thoughts flew through his head, most of them of Zoey. He didn't feel much pain, it was more an afterthought. His vision swam, and he asked himself if this was how his story ended. He heard the same dark, inhuman voice that had told him to kill Lalna speak. "Not yet, you fool. It's my turn to take over."

He was aware of the two assassins staring at him, muttering words of alarm before vanishing in a frantic manner. That was the last thing he saw before a pain worse than anything he'd ever experienced shot through him, and he blacked out.

Silently the assassins watched from afar as an ebony blackness swallowed him, turning his skin the color of midnight. They saw his eyes reopen and glow a darker purple as his body morphed into that of a beast. A much deadlier form of an Enderman; stronger, larger, and obviously smarter.

They heard the inhuman growls and roars and screams as his bones themselves changed their shape. Then, after all this was done and the beast was in full control, they heard the bone-chilling scream of a monster released from it's cage. A predator all too ready to tear it's prey apart. It looked straight at the two of them, and smiled devilishly. "You," it said "You will make a fine first meal."

With that the beast lunged at them, and the chase began.

Rythian's head hurt. That was the first thing he registered when he came to. He felt himself laying on the ground, and then felt light shining on his face. He tried to move, but everything hurt. A weak groan escaped him and his eyes opened slightly. He didn't know where he was; all he could see were the branches of trees and the harsh sunlight. It must've been midday, the way he figured it.

"Ah, you're awake!" A somehow familiar voice said happily. He turned his neck and saw the girl he had healed in the forest a few weeks ago. "Anastassia?" He asked weakly, surprised at how scratchy his voice was. She smiled and offered him a cup of water, helping him to sit up. He gulped the water down greedily, looking around. He was laying on a bedroll near a firepit in the forest, Anastassia sitting across from him. His torso was bandaged, along with his right arm. His katars sat beside him, their sheaths still attached to his thighs.

"Better now?" The pale girl asked as she took the empty cup from him. He nodded. "Where am I?" He asked, his voice back to normal. "My friend and I's camp, though I'm not quite sure where we are exactly… It was kind of a hurried setup." She replied, turning away from him and putting the cup in a nearby crate. He tried to remember how he got here, but his head hurt when he tried to think back. He remembered jumping down into the battle at the fortress, but then….

She turned back to him, sitting beside him as she checked his bandages. "I know you're probably wondering how you got here… I found you all bloodied and bruised nearby. You were awake, but barely. I helped you back here, and you've been out for 4 days since then…" Rythian nearly gagged. "4 days?!" He exclaimed, and she nodded. "Yes. I thought you'd never wake up!" He sat there for a moment. Poor Zoey… She probably thought him dead! Oh Notch what was he going to do!?

He shook his head sharply. He had to do something other than sit here. He turned to Anastassia. "Do you know how far we are from Tekkitopia?" She shook her head. "No, I'm afraid I don't. My friend has been gone for a week or so; he was going to find the nearest town to speak with someone and find some supplies, but… He hasn't gotten back yet." Rythian frowned. He didn't know where his horse was, or where his bird was. He had no idea if he was anywhere near the fortress he remembered being at last, and he didn't know if he was on enemy territory or somewhere else entirely.

"Are you hungry?" Anastassia asked "We don't have much left, but I'm sure I can find something good enough for you." He nodded eagerly, not realizing just how hungry he was until she'd mentioned food. She smiled again, standing and heading back to the crate she'd gotten the cup out of. They were silent for awhile while she prepared what looked like stew or soup of some kind, before Rythian asked "Do you mind if I ask why you helped me? There's a war going on between the 3 kingdoms, why help a potential threat?"  
She laughed slightly, looking at him over the cooking pot she had set up over the fire. "I could've asked the same of you when you helped me." She said, looking back to her cooking as she finished; "I suppose I felt I owed you for helping me before. You helped me, why shouldn't I have helped you? Besides that, I was beginning to worry over my friend. I figured helping you would keep my mind off him."

She frowned slightly at that, but seemed to push it back in her mind as she poured the soup into a bowl and brought it over to him. He accepted it eagerly, and they ate in silence.

After they'd finished, he reached over and picked his katars up off the ground, looking them over before putting them back into their usual spots. After that he checked and double-checked his alchemical bag, making sure none of his things had gone missing. The only things he didn't have were the things he leaving in his room at the fortress.

Anastassia went about putting the pot and bowls away, and then left him alone to go gather wood. When she returned it was after dusk, and Rythian was staring into space, thinking about Zoey and the rest of the people he'd left behind at his family's estate. His mother must've been frantic by now…

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a voice coming from the forest to his left, shouting "Ana? Anastassia? I'm back!" Just then a tall man stepped into the clearing. He had black hair that nearly fell over his brown eyes, and a tall, lanky-looking build. His skin was a tone or so darker than Rythians', and he was probably around the same height, though he looked a little younger. A silver sword hung at his side, and he wore black clothing under what looked like enchanted iron armour, a red cape hanging off his shoulders.

Anastassia left her place by the stack of wood she'd been so meticulously setting up and ran up to him, punching his chestplate as she scolded "You sir are officially in trouble! You told me you'd only be gone for a day or so!" He smirked, apparently not noticing Rythian. He handed the girl the bags he'd been carrying, stating "We're farther from civilization than I thought. It took me 2 days just to get to the smallest village. They didn't even have a proper inn!" She ignored his comments, saying sternly "You should know by now not to promise me something and not fulfill it."

He only rolled his eyes, just now noticing Rythian, who sat beside the fire watching them. His right hand immediately flew to the hilt of his sword, though he didn't draw it as he asked "And who the hell is this?" Anastassia snapped "Oh stop it! Do you really think I would let someone into our camp we couldn't trust?" He eyed the masked mage for a moment before admitting "No, I suppose not. But that doesn't answer my question."

She quickly explained what he had done for her, and then explained how she was returning the favour. She turned to Rythian afterwords, saying jokingly "I'm sorry, he has a hard time trusting people sometimes. Rythian, this is Umbras. Umbras, this is Rythian." Both men eyed each other, before the latter gave a respectful nod. Umbras returned the nod curtly, then proceeded to ignore the mage.

"Well, Ana, I think you'll be pleased to know that I got all the supplies I could buy. Potions included." He said, turning back to her. "Quit calling me Ana. You know my name, use it!" He laughed slightly, sitting on the other side of the fire from Rythian. She rolled her eyes, and they were silent for awhile.

After she'd put the supplies he'd bought in their proper places, she spoke again. "Did you run into any bandits along the road?" He shook his head. "Not this time, no. It probably would've taken me longer to get back if I had." She shrugged, throwing another log into the fire as she said "Just wondering."

Rythian chose to speak now, saying "So, Umbras, you said it took you 2 days to get to the nearest village?" He nodded. "Do you know which kingdom we're in?" He thought for a second. "We're in Astron, somewhere near the mountains that separate this country from the country it broke free of." The mage's brain buzzed. He was as far as he possibly could be from where he'd started.

He needed to let the people who cared about him know he was still alive, but the question was, how? Being this far into enemy territory meant he probably couldn't go through towns or pass any guards without being recognized. He was too well known. There would be a scene, and a fight. He didn't want any unnecessary blood on his hands.

Sjin was smart enough to know that having anyone who was as well-informed in the operations of Tekkitopias' Royal Family as Rythian was would be a good prisoner to have. His key to winning the land he needed. Maybe even conquering the whole kingdom. And besides the knowledge he held, Rythian could be used as a hostage, since the kingdoms' rulers had, in some sense or another, come to care about him. There would be a high bounty for him or any other Tekkitopian of any significance to the Royal Family, undoubtedly.

Rythian also knew that he wasn't at his full power. Something had drained him almost completely of not only physical but magical energy, and it had undoubtedly happened during that time he couldn't remember. He was always hurting; his magic was trying to regrow, and quite a bit of his own life force was lost. It wasn't as quick and easy as simply regenerating surface power; the basic level of magic people had. It would take him awhile to regain his strength, and even if his bird had followed him all the way to Astron, he doubted Corvo would be able to fly that distance without stopping somewhere. He would either be shot for his meat and feathers or the note attached to his leg.

He was out of options. The only thing he could do was wait for his power to return, and when it did, he would have to travel through Astron to even get to Tekkitopia. And if it took Umbras 2 days just to find a village… It would be a long trip. He would do it, though, when he was able. Anything for Zoey.

That was how it had always been, and if he could help it, it would stay that way.


	18. Chapter 17

Zoey stood with her parents and Honeydew as the messenger Ridgedog had sent told them of the battle that had happened 6 days ago. They had been victorious, though the casualties were far from minimal. There were quite a few people missing, but as the messenger read off the number from a letter, he swallowed hard. He glanced nervously at the princess before mumbling "Your Majesties, one of the knights has gone missing. Been gone since the midpoint of the battle… He's a rather significant person among the court." Xephos was standing next to a desk, and was bent over writing a letter to someone. He didn't look up as he asked "Who is it? One of the noble's brat children?

The messenger shook his head. "N-No sir." He replied, obviously nervous now. "Who then?" The king asked, still not looking from his letter. The man gulped. "It's Sir Rythian Enderborn, My Liege." The quill fell from Xephos' hand, the only sound in the room being the dull thud as it hit the desk. Zoey stared, unbelieving, at the messenger. Cecilia had much the same reaction, except tears streaked their way slowly down her cheeks. Lomadia had one hand covering her mouth.

Ravs was there, coming in from the adjacent room at hearing the messenger speak his friends' name. Tee watched Zoey nervously as Honeydew watched Xephos, Lomadia and Cecilia simply looking at each other in shock. Finally, the princess spoke. "He's been missing for four days and you waited until NOW to tell us?!" She snapped, her father opening his mouth to try and calm her, only to have her spin on her heel and point accusingly at him. "I don't want to hear a WORD out of you, dad! YOU'RE the one who sent him away because YOU were paranoid! Now he's MISSING, and he very well could be DEAD! All because you REFUSED to leave my personal life ALONE!"

The room remained silent as she continued on. "I know for a FACT that you thought sending him away would solve your problems! You thought if he was gone, there'd be NOTHING to worry about! You never even CONSIDERED the way that would effect everyone else! You never fathomed what would happen to the REST of us if this happened!" He stood, staring at his fiery daughter. Her eyes seemed to turn a toxic orange as she spoke. "Well, GUESS WHAT, dad?! You don't have to THINK about it! IT'S HAPPENING RIGHT NOW!"

Zoey was furious, and even Ravs, drunk as he was, knew better than to stop her from venting now. Her eyes now seemed to glow a bright orange, and she gestured towards the people in shock behind her. "Cecilia is CRYING! Your WIFE is standing there in HORROR! Even your BEST FRIEND is looking at you in DISBELIEF!" Xephos glanced at Honeydew, finding his daughter was right.

"And I want NOTHING MORE than to punch you right in the FACE! Because Rythian could be DEAD, and it's YOUR FAULT!" She screamed, her voice turning gravelly with tears as she finished her rant. She turned from him -turned from all of them- and ran off, tears sliding their way down her cheeks. The rest of the group watched her go, even Teep too shocked to move.

They all just watched her leave, hearing the loud bang of the door as she slammed it on her way out. She stalked through the courtyard, down the hall, and up the spiral stairs to the tower housing she and Rythians' bedrooms. Though instead of running to her room, she ran into his and slammed the door behind her.

She fell onto his bed face-first, breathing the scent of his sheets in deeply. She couldn't believe it. Rythian couldn't be missing. There must have been a mistake… But she knew there was no mistake. Ridgedog didn't make mistakes like that.

How did this happen? He was one of the best -if not the best- fighters in the kingdom… He knew better than anyone how to defend himself, what could've happened to him? He would never run from anything, or hide from the people he was helping. What if Sjin or Lalna had gotten to him? What if he was being tortured right now? Zoey shuddered at the thought, knowing that if he was he was being asked about her and her family.

She shouldn't have let him leave her. She should have done something more than stand there and watch him go. He had told her before this war started that he would run away with her if it was necessary. She should have made him run with her. He was supposed to be here with her, keeping her safe from Sjin and Lalna! He should've been sleeping in this bed at night, not her!

She shouldn't have let him leave her….

She clung to his blankets, curling herself into a ball around them. "It's my fault.." she muttered to herself, her eyes still closed tightly. "No," a voice responded, "it's mine." She opened her eyes to find her father standing in the doorway, arms crossed but eyes soft and gentle. So much like Rythians' often were, it pained her to think. She scowled. "Go away, dad. I don't want to see you."

She thrust her head back into Rythians' sheets, her eyes shut tight as she fought tears again. Xephos only sighed, and walked over and sat on the bed beside her. "Zoeya…." He said gently, hesitating touching her so as not to upset her further. "I said go away!" She said again, motioning with her hand for him to get out. He ignored her, and when she broke into a fit of tears, he pulled his daughter onto his lap, whispering into her ear as she cried. "Zoey, I'm sorry… I'm so sorry to have done this to you. I was only trying to help you. To protect you. I didn't want him to break your heart. But it turns out it broke anyways."

She clutched his red and gold jacket tightly, saying in between sobs "You.. You w-were trying to p-protect m…me from the wrong pe-person!" He nodded. "I know, sweety, I know. I'm sorry. I never thought in a million years this would happen… Ridge said he was being reckless. Said he went into battle without armour on…" A loud sobbing fit escaped Zoey, and he paused to try and calm her.

"I think he wanted to get hurt severely enough that he needed to be brought back. He knows that if a soldier gets hurt bad enough we send them home.." The princess paused for a moment to take a deep breath. She spoke shakily, saying "H-He wanted to get hurt bad j-just to come back?" She asked, looking up at her father with a spark of hope in her eyes. Xephos nodded.

"I believe so. Ridgedog talked to his roommate, Panda. The boy said that Rythian hadn't been acting normally. Didn't eat much, stared off into space a lot. Didn't talk to many people." When she didn't say anything he sighed, saying "Zoey, I know you don't want to hear this, but it's quite possible that Rythian's d-" She cut him off.

"No, dad. He's alive. I know he is. I can feel him." She snapped, getting up and walking to the glass doors looking onto the balcony. "Zoey…." Xephos tried again, only to be ignored. After a few more attempts to get to her, he heaved a heavy sigh and left her alone. She was glad when she heard his footsteps fade downstairs. She kept her eyes glued on the blue sky, silently hoping that the feeling in her chest wasn't lying to her.

"Rythian…." She whispered, letting one silent tear slide down her cheek. "Please, just come back home…. We need you here. All of us."

Teep stood silently in the doorway. He had been standing there since Xephos had stood to leave. He couldn't believe how the sadness just radiated off his friend, just like her happiness did. He had known she would be the most effected by Rythians' disappearance -he could tell that when she shouted at her father- but he had figured she would be more angry than sad…

He knocked on her open door, acting as if he had just gotten there. She turned, tear already wiped from her face, and smiled at him. "Hey Tee!" She said in fake happiness, walking up to him with a forced bounce in her step. As she talked and led him outside, he wondered if this was how Rythian always knew she was faking something. He had seen her truly sad before.

Indeed, the mage in question had seen Zoeya at both her worst times and her best. Right now, however, he was only concerned about finding a way back to her. He didn't like where his situation was leading him, wherever that may have been. He didn't exactly know; he just knew it wouldn't end well.

Sighing, Rythian looked around. He'd been sitting in the same spot for hours; a nice shaded spot under a willow tree next to the camp Anastassia and Umbras shared with him. He knew Umbras didn't trust him, nor did he really want him around, so he tried to keep his distance. Whenever he left, though, Anastassia always called him over and talked with him as she went about whatever task she'd set for herself at the time.

She was a nice girl, though some probably wouldn't approve of the close-fitting pants she wore. People still had a hard time excepting girls wearing pants in the kingdoms, though Ciencia was the worst. He also knew somehow that she was in no way a push-over. Her knives' constant presence on her belt and the tiny spark of magical tension in the air around her ensured that, but it was obvious that she wasn't supposed to be the intimidating one of the two wanderers.

It'd only been 2 days since he first woke up after…. Well, he still didn't remember. It felt to Rythian like it'd been forever since he'd last seen Zoeya, or heard her voice. He regretted leaving so badly now, but as always his philosophy was that regrets help nobody. He had to keep going, to focus on the present and the future. Just then, Anastassia brought him back to reality.

"Rythian!" She shouted, alarm in her voice. The mage was up and in the camp before she could say anything else. There she was, holding up a battered-looking -and rather angry- Umbras, who had his jaw clenched as he clutched a wound on his head. "What-" Rythian said before getting cut off by the wounded man. "Astronians." He growled through clenched teeth. "They found out about you somehow. They found me on my way back from the spring just south of here."

Anastassia was obviously angry as she asked "What the hell did you do to make them attack you?!" With a small smile he said "When they asked me if I knew anything about him," he gestured to Rythian with his hand, "I gave them a bit of attitude. And by that I mean I may have hit one of them."

"If you weren't already in pain I'd hit you!" She growled, and Rythian took the injured man on his shoulders instead of hers while she ran about the camp, throwing things into her own alchemical bag and stamping out the fire, kicking the ashes across the clearing. It was obvious this wasn't the first time this had happened. She was experienced in hurried clean-ups.

In less than a minute the entire camp had been packed up, and Anastassia quickly healed Umbras' wounds. After that, they were running through the forest, not knowing exactly where they were going. Rythian had to resist the urge to fly or teleport: not only would he leave his companions behind, but drain himself of the little magic energy he had gotten back over the past 2 days.

Soon enough, though, they heard horses behind them somewhere, and the shouts of Astronians seeking revenge. As they ran, Rythian huffed "You had to have done more than just hit one of them, Umbras…. They're fricking livid!" He rolled his eyes, but admitted "Okay, so maybe when the smoke cleared I'd killed one or two of them….." Anastassia shouted back to them as she sprinted ahead "We have to find somewhere to hide! We can't keep this up forever!" "Then we fight!" Her partner shouted back, skidding to a stop and drawing his sword. Rythian followed suit, leaving her on the minority side of the argument. With a huff of displeasure she threw the bags she'd been carrying into the branches of the tree beside her, and quickly scrambled up it, throwing a black hood down to both of them.

"If you insist, at least put these on. They should at least keep you somewhat inconspicuous." She said, putting her own over her head. Rythian looked at it for a second, but put it on when he heard hooves fast approaching. He looked up at the branch Anastassia sat in to find her with one dagger in hand, inching towards a place where the branch reached over the two boys.

She winked at him, and he turned away from her, both katars in his hands. Just then the horses burst into the small clearing the group stood in. 5 huge horses, each with an Astronian soldier on it's back, skidded to a halt in front of them. The leader of the band of soldiers sneered down at the two men, not noticing the girl in the tree above his head.

"Well well. Looks like the famous Blackblood Outlaws found another member… Where's the girl eh? I would LOVE to have another shot at putting a sword through her neck…." He laughed, only to be cut off by a voice from above him. "Sorry, but you won't get that chance." He only had time to look up before Anastassia had dropped down onto him, knocking him off his horse and plunging one of her daggers into his chest. His horse bolted. The others' horses wanted to.

This was Rythian and Umbras' que to get involved. As their female companion got off the body of the dead officer, she flung a dagger at a soldier struggling with his horse. Rythian, determined not to harm the horses, hung from the branch of a tree and kicked another off his horse, sending him flying straight onto Umbras' sword. From here Rythian mounted the horse himself, and cut down the soldier on the horse next to him.

They all turned to the last soldier, and as if they could read each others' minds, Umbras and Anastassia both took a dagger from their belts and flung it into a vital spot on the mans' body. Anastassia hit his heart, Umbras' blade went in between his eyes. The two turned to each other and removed their hoods, revealing proud little smirks on both of their faces.

Rythian had already calmed three horses other than his own, and said "At least now we have a quicker way of getting around." Anastassia, confused, looked at the 4th horse. "What's that one for?"

"The supplies," the mage replied simply. "That way you don't have to carry them everywhere." With a small smile she nodded, and climbed back up the tree in which she'd thrown said supplies, throwing them one bag at a time down to Umbras.

After a few minutes, everything was packed on the 4th horse, and the three others were being ridden through the forest by the trio. Rythian didn't ask about the whole "Blackblood Outlaws" thing. Ana had told him numerous times about how Umbras' mischief always got them in trouble. That's why they were constantly moving around.

They rode on in the direction they'd been running. Even though Umbras insisted that he knew where they were going, they ended up going in circles quite a few times. By the time night began to fall they were lost and tired, and Anastassia was quickly getting fed up with her partners' sense of direction -or lack thereof.

"Oh we might as well be trying to track a ghost with YOUR sense of direction!" She snapped when he tried to tell them that he knew where they were for only the 100th time. He opened his mouth to protest, but snapped it shut when she shot him a look like ice. Rythian, riding slightly faster than the two, spoke for the first time in hours.

"I say we just let the horses go where they want." This statement caused both outlaws to argue with him, but he raised his hand for silence, an air of authority about him. "Hear me out," he insisted. The pair was quiet. "I've seen these horses and how they are trained. Zoey-" he stopped himself halfway through his explanation and reworded it, visibly wincing at the name of the fire-haired princess.

"The princess and I were at the Astronian palace during a peace meeting between King Sjin and King Xephos. We went to the stables and we saw them training the horses. If they are left to their own accord, they'll go back to their stables. It's something the Astronians do to keep resources available for the army."

"Are you telling me," Umbras whined indignantly "that we could have just SAT HERE and they would've taken us right into an Astronian city?! Why didn't you say any of this EARLIER?!" Smirking slightly, Rythian replied simply "You were the one insisting you knew where to go…." After this the outlaw shut his mouth.

The trio stopped and camped for the night, making sure to tie the horses tightly to one of the nearby trees. Rythian stayed up later than the other two once they'd gotten situated. By the time they were asleep he was just starting to settle in. In his alchemical bag he still had the flask Ravs had given him of whiskey the day he left. He pulled it out, fingering it absent-mindedly.

Nothing had been right since that day, he realized. Everything was going insane and it started that day. "How much worse could it get?" He mumbled to himself as he tried to sleep. With a frown he answered his own question. "It could get infinitely worse…"

After a single swig of the whiskey he laid down and fell asleep in a few minutes, the flask tucked back in his bag. His dreams weren't pleasant. But then again, they never really were…


	19. Chapter 18

Rythian woke in the middle of the night to an all too familiar screech, somewhere in the forest to his right. Pulling out his father's sword, he got up and crept toward the sound. Stupid Endermen. He scowled as he saw it; the tall black monster was holding a clump of dirt and grass in it's clawed hands, and it stared right at him with purple glowing eyes.

Then something odd happened. He understood it's screeches, and it SPOKE to him. "Follloww" it said, making Rythian's head hurt. How could he understand it? Was it speaking his language or….. Was he understanding it's language? The black humanoid looked to the enchanted silver sword in the youth's hand.

"Ssshhheathhh thhhe sswwoorrd. Wwe meeeeaaaannn nno harmmm tto youu." The thing said, dropping the clump of sod. Rythian swallowed hard, and sheathed the sword. What the hell was going on? The creature turned from him and began lumbering off, repeating "Follloww…"

Rythian did so, extremely cautiously. "Where are you taking me?" He asked the Enderman, who hesitated a few moments before replying "Tto ouuurr Quueeeeen. Ssshhhe haaassss caaaallled forrr youu." Rythian went quiet. Their Queen? He knew of an Enderdragon, but a queen? WAS the queen the dragon?

He followed the strange Enderman for awhile before coming upon a large clearing where more Endermen stood in a loose ring. "Youuu brooought hiiiim…" The others said in unison, and again Rythian gulped, the question again crossing his mind. What the hell was going on?

"What now?" He asked when he was lead to the center of the circle. In unison, all the Endermen replied "Weeee wiiilll briiiing youuu tooo Thee Eennnndd. Weee willll tellleepoort youu. Youuu wiiill speaaak tto theeee Queeeeenn. Weee willl brrriing youu baaccck." Swallowing again, Rythian replied as calmly as he could "Alright, fine…. Let's go, I guess…?"

With that the Endermen shrieked in unison, lifting their arms in the air. Purple swirled in the circle, and soon Rythian felt the familiar tug in his gut and pull on his body as he was teleported. When the purple faded into other colors, he found himself standing on some form of cobbled white stone. Obsidian towers rose from it, with crystals atop each. A large obsidian castle rose from the rocks as well, at the opposite end of the land from Rythian. Endermen walked nearly everywhere. When he looked over the edge of the rocks, he saw nothing but a large black Void. He recognized this place from his books. He was in The End.

The Endermen nudged him towards the black castle, and the party walked through The End towards it, the remaining Endermen staring at the human who had entered into their realm. None of them attacked. Most stared at the blade at his hip. His father's sword. Anthame.

When they finally did reach the castle, the large gates swung open for them, letting them pass before clanking back closed behind them. Rythian walked with the Endermen into the main hall.

There, atop a lavish silver and purple throne, sat a woman in a flowing black dress, with purple-black hair that fell all the way to the back of her knees as she stood. A black and silver crown adorned her head, and Rythian saw that what he had thought was a purple and black cape were actually leathery dragon wings of the same color. Her eyes shone purple like his and the Endermen's around them, and as she spoke, the enderpearl necklace adorning her throat glinted in the eerie light of The End.

"Ah… So you HAVE brought him to me. Good work, my pets. Now then, leave us. I have much to discuss with Rythian here…" She said with a smooth voice. The Endermen did as they were told, leaving Rythian and the strange woman alone. She turned to him and smiled with white teeth, two vampire-like fangs slightly sharper than her other teeth showing themselves. "Ah, and here he is. The famous Rythian Enderborn. How nice to finally meet you…." She said, eyes sliding across the blade on his belt nervously. "I am Silicia, the Queen of The End…. I have called you here to offer you some… Insight."

Rythian frowned, asking "How do you know my name, Silicia? How do you know who I am?" She laughed slightly, replying "All in due time, all in due time. Right now, you must remember what has happened to get you here." She placed two of her fingers on his forehead, and before he knew it, memories were rushing into his head. He remembered now, what had happened after he'd entered the battle at the fortress. Assassins…. Images and sounds and the feeling when he'd nearly died came rushing back to him, and he gasped.

Silicia pulled her fingers from his head, a small smirk playing on her lips. "H-How…." The knight stammered, unable to form words. She smiled again, explaining "You lost your memory after that battle. I'll now show you why." Again she touched her fingers to his forehead. He saw himself, he realized, just after the male assassin had stabbed him. His skin…. Was turning black! It started with his scars, and black lines worked their way all around him, and soon enough it looked like his entire body ran with black blood in his veins. The rest of his skin turned black, and there was blinding purple and black light…. When the light dimmed he wasn't himself anymore. He was like an Enderman, but… Bigger. Stronger. His skin was completely black now, his eyes reptilian in nature but still the same shade of purple. His body had to be stretched at least a foot longer, but he was much beefier than any Enderman. If one would look closely they would see his black skin wasn't really skin at all but made up of flat black scales. They all blended and became one big optical illusion.

The beast that had once been him turned to the assassins that had been watching from afar and chased after them, catching up to them in no time. They fought him, but they were no match. That was, until the girl pulled some magical spell that weakened him so badly he fell to his bestial knees. In almost no time at all he was shrinking back down again, his black scales disappearing. Soon he was just a teenager with a hole in his stomach, and he collapsed to the ground before the two assassins, blacking out.

Silicia took her hand from his head again, and Rythian simply stared at his own hands. He….. He was a monster. He felt the voice again now, the one of the beast. "So now you see…" It hissed, "You and I are the same. I am as real as you are. No mere figment of your imagination. I exist. And I exist inside you…." Rythian shook his head sharply, forcing the dark voice away. Still, the thoughts kept flowing.

Zoey….. He was more of a danger to her than he'd realized…. What if he got angry around her and he lost it? He couldn't stand the thought of that…. Thing hurting her. He looked to Silicia, who smiled and said gently "Listen to me, Rythian. Listen well. I can teach you to control the beast within you. I can teach you to shape it into more than just a mindless animal…. You can become something from your gift! Your enemies will quake in fear, Rythian! You can exact revenge on those who wronged you!"

Revenge certainly did sound nice… Especially on Lalna and Sjin. He opened his mouth to ask her more when a voice shouted from behind him. A voice he was familiar with.

"Rythian, don't listen to a word she says!" Anastassia called from behind him. He turned to see she and Umbras standing there, panting, weapons drawn, in the doorway of the main hall of the castle. They watched Silicia with caution, anger in their eyes. Rythian sputtered, but never formed any coherent words. The pair ran up to him, weapons still drawn, and the curly-headed woman continued to speak.

"Don't listen to her. She lies. She'll tell you your curse is a gift. Offer you her help. Offer you power beyond your wildest dreams…. But the cost is higher than your life. She'll take anything and everything you hold close to you! She'll strip you of anyone you ever cared about! She…. She…." Anastassia fumbled for words, getting quite upset. Umbras finished for her, replying through his teeth as he glared at the Queen "She'll turn you into a monster more horrible than you can imagine. So, so much worse than you are now."

Rythian stared at them, seeing Ana shook with her emotions, eyes boring holes into the Queen as she laughed at them. "You honestly expect him to believe you? The very assassins who nearly killed him? If not for the power I gave him, he would be dead!" Ana glared at the dragon-woman, shouting "If you hadn't given him your damned marks we wouldn't have tried to!" She turned to him, saying desperately "We thought you were working for Her! You have the marks, don't you? Under the mask!"

"Marks? I don't-" Rythian began, only to be cut off by the shaken up woman in front of him. "They just look like scars at first… But they turn black over time! It's her way of claiming the children she's poisoned with her blood!" She pointed accusingly at Silicia, who was again laughing. "Poisoned? I prefer the term 'graced'…." She said, a wicked smile spreading across her face.

"You don't know what really happened to your father, do you Rythian?" Umbras asked, the brown-haired girl beside him still shaking and staring at the smug-looking Queen of The End. "O-Of course I know what happened! I was there!" Rythian stammered, frankly rather shocked at all that was going on. Umbras shook his head, and Anastassia, still shaking, put her own two fingers to his forehead, just as Silicia had.

Suddenly he was back in that forest. Back in those moments when he first heard them coming. Except this time…. The screeches of Endermen filled the forest. Not men on horses. When he and his mother hid, he heard the "vwoop" sound they made when they teleported. Then he heard his father. That dreadful scream didn't change. What he found when he ran to the clearing definitely did.

It wasn't soldiers that surrounded his father. They weren't kicking and punching him. It was Endermen, their long black arms almost looking like legs as they scraped the long claws on their hands across his father's body. His sword, the sword Rythian had at his hip right now, was laying halfway across the clearing from him, at Rythian's feet. He picked it up and charged them.

The rest was pretty much the same as well; he killed a few of them before getting overpowered and beaten up like his father. His mother crept into the clearing, his parents argued…. Rythian had to stop the tears from reaching his eyes. This never got any easier to see.

He was pulled back into reality, Anastassia taking her finger from his head abruptly. Silicia was staring at them, seemingly waiting patiently for his flashbacks to end. Rythian turned to her, and had the first coherent thought since he'd arrived here. "YOU KILLED HIM, YOU MOTHERFUCKING BITCH! YOU KILLED HIM!" He screamed, the sound echoing through The End. Immediately Umbras grabbed his arm, sensing what the knight intended to do. He'd wanted to do the same as soon as he'd seen the stupid woman.

Rythian struggled against the other man's grip, growling bestially and immediately drawing his father's sword. It burned his hand, but he only gripped it tighter. It hummed with energy, the enchantments' light purple glow brighter than it ever had been. Anastassia still had her black dagger in her right hand, but with her left she grabbed Rythian's other arm, helping to hold him back as much as she could.

The Queen laughed. Rythian struggled harder. "What are you going to do about it? You can't kill me, sweet children. Only someone equal in my power could ever hope of doing that…." She said, laughing darkly. Rythian let out a sound that was more like a roar than a human scream of anger, shaking as he tried to break his friends' grips on him. All he wanted was to avenge his father. Kill the bitch who'd killed him…. Get the justice he'd never gotten. Revenge. The word bounced around in his skull. Revenge, revenge, revenge.

Umbras looked desperately to his partner. He was going to change soon if they didn't do anything. They both knew that. Ana nodded, mustering almost all her strength and teleporting them to a nearby portal back to their own realm. "No!" Rythian screamed, realizing what they were doing. They shoved him into the portal, looking at each other again before jumping in after him, weapons drawn.

When they popped up on the other side in the middle of a forest, both outlaws immediately turned and fired magic at the portal behind them, -Umbras' being shadows the color of blood and Anastassia's being purple and black lightning bolts- breaking the Ender Eyes keeping the portal anchored in the world. After they were broken, the portal deactivated. No Endermen could follow then through that portal, at least. Rythian was simply sitting on the ground, staring at where the portal had been swirling with black energy, still shaking from the anger and shock of his experiences in The End.

"She killed him…." He mumbled, this being the first thing to come out of his mouth. Anastassia and Umbras both looked at him, each seeming to understand his plight. He hauled himself up, looking around. "Where are we?" He asked in a daze. His anger was gone, now replaced with simple shock. The outlaws looked at each other and then around them, trying to use something to identify where they were.

A plant caught Ana's eye, and she examined it before stating matter-of-factly "We're in Tekkitopia again. This plant-" She was cut off by Rythian, who didn't really seem to care how she knew where they were. "You're serious?" He asked suddenly, his eyes wide and obviously hopeful. She only nodded, and before she could say anything else he'd flown straight up and was hovering above the tree line, looking around despite further draining the magic he had only just started regaining.

What he saw proved Anastassia right. All the way at the very tip of a hill on the horizon was the silhouette of the Castle of Tekkitopia. Rythian smiled wide, the thought of Zoey springing into his mind immediately. He was so much closer than he had been before… And he now had more knowledge to boot. As he returned to the ground, though he nearly fell over, he exclaimed "We're close! We're so damn close!" Though the thought of Silicia and his father's murder by her hand still lingered in his brain, but he pushed it as far back into his memory as possible. He was so close to Zoey it wasn't even fair. So. Close.

He just hoped he'd be able to make it to her without further interruption. It wouldn't be as easy as he hoped. Though, it never really was…..


End file.
